^V  4932    ,G4    1889 
Jerberding,   G.   H.    1847-1927 
lew  Testament  conversions 


New  Testament  Conversions: 


A  SERIES  OF  SERMONS 


BY 


REV.  G.  H.  GERBERDING,  A.  M., 

PASTOR  OF  ST.  MARK'S  ENGLISH   EVANGELICAL  LUTHERAN  CHURCH,  FARGO, 

DAKOTA,  AUTHOR  OF  •'  THE  WAY  OF  SALVATION  IN  THE 

LUTHERAN  CHURCH." 


PUBLISHED  FOR  THE  AUTHOR. 


SECOND  THOUSAND. 


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LUTHERAN  PUBLICATION  SOCIETY, 
PHII^DELPHIA,  PA. 


Copyrighted,  1889, 

BY 

G.  H.  GERBERDING. 

ALL  RIGHTS  RESERVED. 


TO 

THE   CAUSE   OF  A   HEARTY,   HEAI,THY, 
LIVING  PIETY, 
WHICH  SPRINGS  NOT  FROM  SUPERFICIAL  SENTIMENTALISM,  OR 
OCCASIONAL   emotionalism;   A  PIETY  THAT  GROWS  OUT 
OF  A   CORRECT  UNDERSTANDING,  A   TRUE   APPRE- 
CIATION AND  A    PRAYERFUL,    DILIGENT  USE 
OF  THE  CHRIST-ORDAINED  MEANS  OF 
GRACE,  THIS  BOOK  IS  DEDICATED 
BY 

THE  AUTHOR. 


CONTENTS 


PAGE 

Introduction 9 


SERMON  I. 

Conversion  :  Its  Nature,  Necessity  and  Efficient 
Agencies 15 


•    SERMON  II. 
The  Woman  of  Samaria 31 

SERMON  III. 

The  Prodigai,  Son 43 

(v) 


VI  CONTENTS. 

PAGE 

SERMON  IV. 
The  Pubi,ican 57 


SERMON  V. 
Zaccheus 71 


SERMON  VI. 
Peter,  Fai,i,  and  Re-Conversion  of   .  . 85 

SERMON  VII. 
The  Dying  Thief lox 


SERMON  VIII. 
Tests  and  Fruits  of  Peter's  Re-Con^-krsion  .    ...    117 

-     SERMON  IX. 
The  Three  Thousand 133 


CONTENTS.  vii 

PAGE 

SERMON  X. 
The  Ethiopian  Eunuch 151 


SERMON  XI. 
Paul's  Conversion 167 


SERMON  XII. 
Cornelius 185 


SERMON  XIII. 
SERGIUS  PaUIvUS 201 


SERMON  XIV. 
Lydia 215 


SERIVION  XV. 
The  Jailer 233 


Vlll  CONTENTS. 

SERMON  XVI. 
A  Spurious  Conversion 251 

SERMON  XVII. 
Ai<MosT  Converted 263 


INTRODUCTION. 


"Of  the  making  of  books,  there  is  no  end."  If 
this  was  true  in  Solomon's  day,  how  much  more 
true  in  our  day? 

The  saying  of  the  wise  man  can  also  be  applied 
to  many  special  departments  of  literature.  It  can 
be  said  with  truth,  "of  the  making  of  sermon 
books,  there  is  no  end."  Why,  then,  send  forth 
another  Book  of  Sermons  ? 

Does  it  bring  out  truths  unknown  before?  Does 
it  occupy  ground  unused  before?  Does  it  treat  of 
subjects  not  handled  in  the  past  ?  No !  It  sets 
forth  truth  as  old  as  Revelation.  It  tills  in  fields 
that  have  been  broken  and  dragged  and  rolled  by 
all  sorts  of  ploughmen  and  teams  and  implements. 
It  treats  of  a  trite  and  worn  and  common  subject. 

God  was  treating  of  it  and  aiming  at  it  when  He 
said  in  Eden:  '"''Adam^  where  art  thouf'*  God's 
Book  is  full  of  it.  Books  and  sermons  without 
number  have  been  written  upon  it. 

Why,  then,  a  new  book  of  sermons  on  con- 
version ? 

(9) 


lO  INTRODUCTION. 

Because  not  all  that  has  been  written  and 
preached  on  the  subject  is  truth.  Much  of  it  is  the 
saddest  and  most  dangerous  caricature  of  truth. 
Few  subjects  have  been  more  abused,  misrepre- 
sented and  misunderstood.  A  veritable  flood  of 
ruinous  error  has  emanated  from  pen  and  pulpit  on 
this  subject.  A  sad  wreckage  of  doubt,  gloom, 
skepticism,  despair,  insanity  and  self-destruction  is 
the  result.  Much  of  the  current  twaddle  is  the 
shallowest  sentimentalism  or  the  wildest  fanat- 
icism, with  all  the  various  baseless  gradations  be- 
tween. It  tends  to  confuse  the  mind,  to  harden 
the  heart,  to  quench  the  spirit,  to  ruin  the  soul. 

Here,  on  the  one  hand,  are  our  cold,  humani- 
tarian m,oralists.  These  are  the  apostles  of  culture 
and  progress.  They  would  evolve  a  dignified  and 
proud  manliness  out  of  the  natural  man.  Man  is 
too  great,  and  grand,  and  good,  to  need  a  re-crea- 
tion— a  new  heart  and  life!  Conversion,  with 
them,  is  nothing  but  a  laying  aside  of  bad  habits, 
an  outward  reformation. 

On  the  other  hand,  here  is  a  whole  host  of 
would-be  evangelizers.  They  seem  to  consider  it 
their  special  mission  and  commission  to  "convert 
sinners."  They  often  become  quite  proficient  in 
their  avocation.     They  can  bring  about  hundreds 


INTRODUCTION.  1 1 

of  conversions  in  an  evening.  They  get  up  a  re- 
vival in  the  home  church,  or  start  out  to  revive  a 
town  or  city.  We  have  heard  some  of  them  assert 
how  they  have  converted  whole  communities,  and 
how  they  were  going  to  "capture"  such  a  town  or 
city  "for  Jesus!" 

With  them,  conversion  is  a  rousing  of  the  feel- 
ings, a  wave  of  emotion,  a  burst  of  excitement. 

While  they  will  speak  in  thunder  tones  of  the 
necessity  of  conversion  and  of  the  damnation  of 
the  unconverted,  they  rarely  even  attempt  to  ex- 
plain the  nature  of  conversion.  Ask  them  what 
it  is,  and  they  can  give  at  best  very  vague  and  un- 
satisfactory answers.  Ask  them  how  it  is  brouglit 
about,  what  its  agencies  and  instrumentalities  are, 
and  they  don't  know.  Ask  them  what  its  evi- 
dences are,  and  they  don't  tell  you.  They  are  full 
of  pious  phrases,  and  earnest  exhortations,  and 
touching  stories,  and  tearful  pleadings.  But  the 
teaching  of  the  divine  Word  on  this  all-important 
subject  they  know  not ! 

There  is  still  another  class  in  the  Church  who 
need  to  give  renewed  attention  to  this  subject. 

Repelled  by  the  fanaticism  and  the  vagaries  of 
the  aforenamed  class,  they  have  gone  to  the  other 
extreme.     While  the  former  make  a  hobbv  of  the 


12  IXTRODLXTIOX. 

subject,  these  latter  almost  ignore  it.  They  don't 
preach  much  conversion.  They  seem  to  be  almost 
afraid  of  the  term.  They  speak  much  of  truth, 
and  Grace,  and  faith,  and  righteousness.  And 
against  all  this  we  would  be  the  last  to  say  one 
word.  But  to  neglect  or  ignore  the  subject  of  con- 
version is  certainly  a  ver\'  grievous  and  dangerous 
mistake.  It  may  result  in  a  false  security  in  the 
unconverted — of  whom  there  are  certainly  many 
among  the  hearers  of  ever}'  preacher.  It  may  re- 
sult in  the  loss  of  souls,  which  will  be  required  at 
the  pastor's  hand. 

In  these  godless  and  worldly  times  we  must  earn- 
estly and  diligently  preach  conversion.  We  must 
insist  on  its  necessity.  We  must  reason,  exhort, 
convince,  beseech,  and  plead;  ^''Turn  ye^  turn  ye; 
why  will  ye  die  ? ' ' 

We  must  explain  from  the  divine  Word  what  is 
the  nature  of  this  change.  We  must  labor  to  have 
the  plainest  hearer  understand  this  \dtal  subject  and 
his  personal  relation  to  it.  We  must  show  how 
God,  who  alone  has  the  power  to  give  the  new  life, 
yet  has  thrown  all  the  responsibility  on  man,  by 
putting  within  his  reach  the  life-bearing  means  of 
Grace. 

It  was  the  lot  of  the  writer  of  this  book  to  be 


INTRODUCTION.  13 

brought  up  in  the  midst  of  revivalistic  surroundings 
and  preaching.     As  a  pastor  also  his  lot  has  been, 
at    times,    cast   among    proselyting    zealots.     His 
Church,  his  faith,  and  his  people,  have  been  rudely 
attacked  and  slandered.     It  became  necessary  either 
to  give  way  or  to  defend  himself  and  his  faith. 
This  made  it  necessary  to  study  and  examine  the 
whole  subject  of  conversion  and  experimental  re- 
ligion.    He  has  enjoyed  the  happy  experience  of 
findincr  that  the  more  he  studied  the  matter  in  the 
Word  of  God,  the  more  did  he  discover  that  the 
Church  whose  name  he  bears  holds,  confesses,  and 
teaches  on   this  point  also  nothing  but  the  pure 
truth  as  it  is  in  Jesus,     It  has  been  a  source  of  the 
greatest  delight  and  comfort  to  discover  how  the 
scriptural  doctrine   meets   every  diflSculty,   clears 
away  all  doubt,  harmonizes  seeming  contradictions 
between  divine  sovereignty  and  human  responsibil- 
ity, giving  all  the  glory  to  God,  and  laying  all  the 
responsibility  on  man. 

It  was  to  help  others,  who  perhaps  had  difl5culties 
on  this  vital  subject,  that  he  prepared  and  preached 
the  series  of  sermons  contained  in  this  book. 

It  is  with  the  hope  that  they  may  be  helpful  to 
others  also  that  he  offers  these  sermons  to  the 
public.     He  believes  that  in  this  direction  the  field 


14  INTRODUCTION. 

has  not  been  overworked,  and  there  is  room  for 
this  book  of  sermons. 

That  it  may  help  to  lead  some  confused  and 
groping  ones  into  the  light;  that  it  may  counteract 
dangerous  error;  that  it  may  show  the  beauty,  sim- 
plicity and  satisfying  nature  of  the  teachings  of 
the  Word;  and  that  it  may  become  instrumental 
in  leading  to  true  conversions,  is  the  hope  ar.d 
prayer  of  The  Author. 

Fargo,  Dakota,  Easter,  i88g. 


SERMON  I. 


CONVERSION: 

Its  Nature,  Necessity,  and  Efficient  Agencies. 

Acts  iii.  19. 


Ads  m.  ig.    Be  Converted. 


SERMON  I. 

A  SMALL  text,  but  a  big  subject.  A  subject  of 
the  most  vital  importance.  A  subject  round  which 
cluster  the  issues  of  eternity. 

Not  only  is  it  a  subject  of  general  interest;  it  is 
a  subject  of  the  most  intense  personal  concern;  it  is 
a  subject  in  which  each  one  that  reads  these  lines 
is  much  more  deeply  concerned  than  in  the  matter 
of  making  a  living,  getting  on  in-  the  world,  hav- 
ing a  reputation  in  the  community,  or  being  well 
booked  up  in  the  questions  of  the  day.  All  these 
questions  taken  together  are  of  no  weight  at  all 
when  compared  with  the  question,  "How  about 
my  conversion?  Am  I  in  a  converted  state?" 
Jesus  says.  Matt,  xviii.  3:  Except  ye  be  converted 
and  becotne  as  little  children^  ye  shall  not  e7tter  into 
the  kingdont  of  heaven. 

Yes,  dear  reader,  the  question  of  your  eternal 
weal  or  woe  depends  on  the  question  of  your  con- 
version. 

We  need  not  stop  therefore  to  argue  that  each 

one  ought  to  have  clear  ideas  on  this  vital  subject. 

And  yet  there  are  few  subjects  on  which  many 
2*  ( 17 ) 


1 8  NEW  TESTAMENT  CONVERSIONS. 

well  meaning  persons  are  more  in  the  dark.  Worse 
still,  often  those  who  talk  most  about  it  and  are 
loudest  in  urging  its  necessity,  know  least  about 
it.  Why  this  should  be  so  we  can  scarcely  tell. 
It  is  certainly  not  because  the  Word  of  God  is  so 
misty  that  no  one  can  know  what  it  teaches.  It 
must  be  because  many  are  unwilling  to  search  the 
Scriptures  with  a  view  to  bow  to  their  authority, 
and  take  their  own  reason  captive.  Too  many 
would  rather  take  their  feelings  and  impulses  for 
guides  and  standards,  than  the  teachings  of  the 
Divine  Word.  We  desire  to  study  and  examine 
this  subject  in  the  light  of  that  Word,  and  inquire 
into  the  nature  of  this  change,  its  7iecessity  and 
how  it  is  brought  about,  and  finally  some  variations 
in  the  process. 

If  we  inquire  first  into  the  meaning  of  the  term, 
we  find  that  to  convert  means  "to  turn,"  "to  turn 
round,"  "to  change  about."  We  find  this  is  also 
the  clear  meaning  of  the  Latin  word  which  is  the 
root  of  the  English.  The  same  thing  is  true  of  the 
Greek  word  (emerpeipeiv)  translated  "convert"  in  the 
New  Testament.  Its  simplest  meaning  is  "to 
turn  round."  We,  therefore,  find  that  the  same 
word  which  is  in  some  places  translated  "fo  con- 
vert, "  is  in  other  places  translated  ' '  to  turn. ' ' 


NATURE,  NECESSITY   AND   AGENCIES.  1 9 

As  if  a  traveler  discovers  that  he  is  on  the  wrong 
road,  he  turns,  faces  about,  and  gets  on  the  right 
road — so  the  unconverted  sinner,  when  he  realizes 
that  he  is  traveling  on  the  broad  road  that  leadeth 
to  destruction,  turns  or  is  turned  round,  and  gets 
on  the  narrow  way  that  leadeth  unto  life. 

If  now  we  inquire  more  closely  into  the  nature 
of  this  turning  or  changing  about,  we  find  that  it 
comprises  two  distinct  steps  or  parts.  The  first  is 
penitence  or  contrition.  The  sinner  realizes  what 
he  is,  where  he  is,  and  whither  he  is  tending.  He 
realizes  his  lost  and  ruined  and  guilty  state.  See- 
ing as  he  never  saw  before  the  deep  depravity  of 
his  own  heart,  the  heinousness  and  damnableness 
of  its  sin,  the  justness  of  the  judgment,  and  wrath 
to  which  it  exposes  him,  he  loathes  that  sin,  he 
mourns  over  it,  he  desires  to  flee  from  it,  and 
longs  for  deliverance.  This  is  what  the  Bible  calls 
penitence  or  repentance  ;  though  sometimes  the 
word  repentance  is  used  in  a  broader  sense,  and 
covers  the  whole  process  of  conversion.  This  pen- 
itence or  heartfelt  sorrow  for  sin,  and  earnest  desire 
to  be  free  from  it,  is  the  first  step  in  conversion. 

The  second  step  is  faith  in  Christ.  The  penitent 
heart  longing  for  deliverance,  crying  out  for  for- 
giveness, has  Jesus  the  Saviour  from  sin  presented 


20  .  NEW  TESTAMENT  CONVERSIONS. 

to  it.  It  looks  to  Him.  It  begins  to  realize  that 
He  by  His  life  and  death  has  wrought  out  a  com- 
plete salvation.  It  realizes  that  this  Saviour  has 
become  its  own  substitute,  borne  and  atoned  for  all 
its  guilt.  It  reaches  out  and  la^'s  hold  and  casts 
itself  upon  that  Saviour,  and  cries  "Z«9r^,  if  thou 
wilt^  thoit  canst  make  me  clean^^''  and  then,  ''''Lord^ 
I  believe^  help  thou  mine  ttnbelief''  and  then, 
"J/)/  Lord  and  my  God.''''  This  is  faith  ;  it  is  the 
second  step  in  conversion.  In  the  first  step,  the 
sinner  saw  and  realized  that  he  was  on  the  road  to 
destruction,  earnestly  desired  to  get  off  that  road, 
and  began  to  turn  his  back  upon  it  In  the  second 
step,  he  saw  the  narrow  way  that  leadeth  unto  life, 
and  confidently  set  foot  thereon.  He  is  now  con- 
verted or  turned  from  darkness  to  light  and  from 
the  power  of  Satan  unto  God. 

Penitence  then  is  not  something  that  goes  before 
conversion,  and  faith  something  that  follows  after, 
and  conversion  itself  a  mysterious  something  sand- 
wiched in  between;  but  penitence  and  faith  are 
the  two  component  parts  that  make  up  conversion. 
Where  the  former  is,  there  the  latter — unless  there 
be  a  violent  rupture — is  sure  to  follow. 

We  inquire,  in  the  next  place,  who  needs  this 
change?     The  self-evident  answer  certainly  is,  all 


NATURE,  NECESSITY  AND  AGENCIES.  21 

who  are  not  in  a  converted  state;  that  is,  all  who 
do  not  have  the  elements  or  evidences  of  the  new 
life  in  them.  In  other  words,  all  who  do  not  have 
in  their  hearts  true  penitence  for  sin,  and  true  faith 
in  Christ.  Wherever  we  find  true  penitence  and 
true  faith,  there  we  find  a  converted  person;  and, 
conversely,  where  these  elements  of  the  new  life 
are  wanting,  there  is  an  unconverted  sinner. 

Now  if  we  look  for  these  elementary  principles 
of  the  new  life,  we  find  that  there  are  numbers  of 
the  children  and  youth  of  Christian  parents,  who 
certainly  possess  them.  From  their  earliest  recol- 
lection these  young  disciples  hated  and  sorrowed 
over  their  sins.  From  tenderest  childhood  they 
trusted  in  and  loved  the  dear  Saviour.  They  can- 
not think  of  a  time  when  they  did  not  love  Him. 
These  are  children  of  the  covenant.  They  were 
consecrated  and  given  to  the  Saviour  in  tender  in- 
fancy. Believing  parents  had  them  carried  to  the 
baptismal  font,  where,  with  '"''the  washmg  of  re- 
generation^'''' the  '''"washing  of  water  by  the  word^'''' 
they  were  ''''born  of  water  and  of  the  Spirit''''  in 
that  ^''baptism  ivhich  doth  now  also  save  ns^''^  and 
thus  ''''baptized  into  Christy  This  was  to  them 
the  birth^  i.  <?.,  the  feeble  beginning  of  new  life. 

The  sferms  of  the  new  life  then  and  there  im- 


22  NEW  TESTAMENT  CONVERSIONS. 

planted  by  Christ's  own  ordinance,  were  afterwards 
carefully  fostered  and  nurtured  by  the  Word  of  God 
and  prayer.  Among  the  earliest  conscious  lessons 
that  they  learned  from  pious  parents,  were  lessons 
about  Christ  and  salvation  and  eternal  life.  Their 
parents  realized  that  the  promise  is  not  only  to 
them^  but  also  to  their  children.  Such  children  are 
children  of  the  covenant.  They  belong  to  Christ 
since  the  day  of  their  baptism.  They  are  in  line 
with  Moses,  and  Samuel,  and  Jeremiah,  and  John 
the  Baptist,  and  Timothy.  Their  mothers  are  in 
the  spiritual  succession  of  Hannah,  and  Elizabeth, 
and  Lois,  and  Eunice. 

Such  children,  and  the  youth  and  adults  who 
grow  from  such  childhood,  need  no  conversion. 
They  are  among  the  best  Christians,  the  most 
spiritual  and  consecrated  disciples,  the  most  stead- 
fast and  useful  members  of  the  Church  of  Christ. 
Oh,  how  man}^  more  of  such,  who  need  no  conversion 
because  they  have  the  elements  of  the  new  life  and 
are  in  a  consecrated  state,  there  might  be !  How 
many  more  there  would  be,  if,  in  this  fast  age,  this 
age  of  new  measures,  and  new  methods,  and  new 
experiments  in  the  churches,  so  many  had  not 
drifted  away  from  the  old  foundations  laid  in  God's 
Word! — if  a  large  part  of  what  still  calls  itself  the 


NATURE,  NECESSITY   AND   AGENCIES.  23 

Church  of  Jesus  Christ  had  not  repudiated  the. 
ancient  Bible  and  church  teaching  concerning  bap- 
tismal Grace,  the  baptismal  covenant,  prayerful 
home  nurture,  feeding  the  lambs  in  Sunday-school 
and  Church.     But,  we  digress. 

Not  all  who  are  baptized  remain  true  to  their 
baptismal  covenant.  Largely  on  account  of  the. 
unscriptural  notions  and  theories  indicated  above, 
many  lose  or  throw  away  the  Grace  conferred  in 
baptism.  They  become  prodigal  sons,  wanderers 
from  their  Father's  home  and  protecting  care.  All 
such  need  conversion.  As  a  matter  of  course,  also, 
all  such  as  have  never  been  baptized,  and  know 
nothing  of  true  penitence  and  living  faith.  We 
insist,  our  Lutheran  Church  insists,  in  all  her 
standards,  that  all  such  must  be  converted,  or  they 
will  be  eternally  lost. 

There  is  absolutely  no  salvation,  no  heaven  for 
those  who  remain  and  die  in  an  unconverted  state. 
Theirs  is  certainly  a  state  of  great  peril.  We  in- 
quire now  how  is  this  change  brought  about? 
What  are  the  means  or  agencies  through  which  it 
is  wrought? 

Here  we  remark,  first  of  all,  that  no  man  can 
bring  about  this  change  by  his  own  reason  or 
strength.     This  must   be  accomplished,    ''''not  by 


24  NEW  TESTAMENT  CONVERSIONS. 

mighty  i.  e. ,  not  by  human  might,  nor  by  power ^ 
but  by  my  spirit^  saith  the  LoT-d^  '''•No  man  can 
say  that  Jesus  is  the  Lord^  bnt  by  the  Holy  Ghost. ' ' 

Conversion  is  a  divine  work.  The  Spirit  of  God 
must  bring  it  about.  How  does  He  do  it?  Un- 
doubtedly, through  the  Word.  Of  that  Word  Jesus 
says,  ' '  The  words  that  I  speak  tmto  you^  they  are 
spirit  and  they  are  life. ' '  The  Word  is  the  organ 
of  the  Spirit.  We  know  of  no  operations  of  the 
Spirit  outside  of  the  Word.  We  have  never  heard 
of  a  person  under  the  influence  of  the  Spirit  pos- 
sessing the  elements  of  the  new  life  in  a  place 
where  the  Word  had  never  gone.  Only  after  the 
Word  has  gone  into  a  heathen  land,  do  we  find  the 
blessed  influences  of  the  Spirit  there. 

That  Word  calls  itself  a  '"''  ministration  of  the 
Spirit.^ "  "  The  power  of  God  tmto  salvation. ' '  It 
claims  to  be  ^^  quick  ^'''^  i.  e.^  living,  '"''  and  powerful.^ 
and  sharper  than  any  two-edged  sword.''''  ''''Able 
to  save  the  soiil.'^''  It  claims  to  have  the  force  of 
"<2  hammer^''''  the  fervency  of  ^''  a  fire.,''''  the  life  of 
a  ''''seed.,''''  the  refreshing  power  of  ''''the  rain  and 
the  dew.''''  It  says  of  itself  that  it  ''''is peifect.,  con- 
verting the  sotil. ' ' 

We  find  further  that  the  same  divine  operations, 
such  as  calling.,  enlightening.,  regenerating.,  sancti- 


NATURE,   NECESSITY   AND   AGENCIES.  25 

fying^  etc.,  are  indiscriminately  ascribed,  some- 
times to  the  Spirit  and  again  to  the  Word,  evi- 
dently because  the  Spirit  is  in  the  Word  and 
operates  through  it. 

This  Word  then  is  the  instrument  through  which 
the  Holy  Spirit  operates  on  the  sinner's  heart,  and 
converts  him.  Penitence  is  generally  brought 
about  through  the  law.  '"''By  the  lazv  is  the  knowl- 
edge of  sin.''''  It  is  the  great  preacher  and  producer 
of  repentance,  and  thus  becomes  '''' our  schoolmaster 
to  lead  us  to — or  towards — Christ.'''' 

Faith  is  generally  encouraged  and  developed  by 
the  Gospel.  It  holds  up  a  crucified  and  risen 
Redeemer  as  the  sinner's  substitute  and  Saviour. 
It  is  generally  while  the  penitent  and  yearning 
heart  is  contemplating  the  Word  of  the  cross  that 
''''faith  cometh  by  hearing.,  and  hearing  by  the 
word  of  God. ' ' 

Therefore  it  is  the  Word  of  God  as  the  organ  and 
instrument  of  the  Spirit,  that  converts  the  sinner. 
What  a  beautiful  and  simple  method  of  Grace  is 
thus  presented  by  this  true  doctrine  of  the  efficacy 
of  the  Word.  The  sinner  cannot  convert  himself. 
What  is  he  to  do  ?  He  is  to  come  to  the  Word, 
prayerfully  read  it,  hear  it,  ponder  it:  he  is  to  be 
careful  that  he  resist  not,   nor  rid  himself  of  its 


26  NEW  TESTAMENT   CONVERSIONS. 

divine  influence.  It  will  do  its  own  blessed  work. 
It  will  awaken  a  sense  of  sin,  true  sorrow  therefor, 
earnest  longing  for  deliverance,  and  finally  a  joyful 
trust  and  resting  in  Christ. 

This  doctrine  solves  and  clears  up  and  reconciles 
the  relation  of  the  sovereignty  of  God  to  the  re- 
sponsibility of  the  sinner.  It  gives  all  the  glory  to 
God,  and  yet  throws  all  the  responsibility  on  man. 
It  makes  the  waj/  of  salvation  so  clear  and  plain 
that  the  wayfaring  man^  though  afool^  need  not  err 
therein. 

In  conclusion  we  desire  to  notice  some  of  the 
variations  in  the  process  of  conversion. 

Here  we  remark  first  that  there  is  a  difference  in 
the  intensity  of  change.  Some  have  more  intense 
realization  and  abhorrence  of  their  sin  than  others. 
Some  have  a  more  strong  and  joyful  faith  than 
others.  With  some  the  feelings  predominate. 
With  others  the  judgment  controls. 

Again  there  are  differences  in  the  duration  of  the 
process.  Some  may  see  the  awful  depths  of  their 
sin  and  the  greatness  of  their  guilt  at  a  glance. 
They  may  likewise  see  at  once  the  availability  of 
the  salvation  that  is  in  Christ  Jesus,  reach  out  and 
vigorously  lay  hold  of  and  rejoice  in  a  personal 
Saviour.     Others  may  be  a  long  time  in  coming  to 


NATURE,  NECESSITY   AND   AGENCIES.  27 

a  sense  of  sin  and  helplessness  and  need  of  a 
Saviour.  The  Word  of  God  may  come  to  them, 
and  at  first  make  only  a  slight  impression,  perhaps 
a  feeling  of  dissatisfaction  with  self  and  a  little 
restlessness,  i^ittle  by  little  their  eyes  are  opened. 
Message  after  message  conies  to  them.  Deeper  and 
clearer  do  they  see  into  their  lost  and  mined  and 
guilty  state.  At  first  they  see,  as  through  a  mist, 
the  offered  Saviour.  Brighter  and  brighter  shines 
the  light  from  the  Word  of  God.  At  first  only  a 
tremulous  look  to  the  cross,  then  a  timid  reaching 
forth  to  it,  then  a  steadier  gaze  and  a  surer  grasp 
and  a  closer  approach.  And  so  "  z'/  shall  be  little  by 
little^''''  ''''first  the  blade ^  then  the  ear^  and  then  the 
full  corn  in  the  ear^  It  may  be  weeks  or  months 
before  such  persons  can  rest  confidingly  in  a 
present  and  personal  Saviour. 

In  these  matters  it  will  not  do  to  lay  down 
arbitrary  rules.  Much  depends  on  the  natural 
temperament  of  the  person.  One  is  sanguine,  im- 
pulsive, hasty.  In  him  the  feelings  predominate 
over  the  judgment.  With  such  a  one  the  change 
is  apt  to  be  vivid,  decisive  and  short. 

Another  is  of  a  cool,  phlegmatic  temperament. 
His  feelings  are  not  deep.  He  habitually  weighs 
every  matter  brought  to  his  attention  most  carefully. 


28  NEW   TESTAMENT   CONVERSIONS. 

He  never  gets  excited  or  does  anything  hastily. 
In  such  an  one  the  change  will  likely  be  almost  im- 
perceptible and  slow.  And  yet,  when  this  latter 
has  once  unreservedly  accepted  Christ  as  a  personal 
Saviour,  he  is  likely  to  be  the  more  ^eadfast  Chris- 
tian of  the  two. 

Again,  in  the  work  of  conversion,  much  may  de- 
pend on  the  former  life  of  the  person.  One  has 
wandered  very  far  away.  He  has  become  a  sinner 
above  the  Galileans.  He  has  fallen  deeply  into 
shame  and  sin. 

Another  has  not  so  openly  and  flagrantly  been  a 
sinner  exceedingly  before  the  Lord. 

When  the  former  has  his  eyes  opened,  he  will  be 
apt  to  be  more  deeply  impressed  with  his  guilt  and 
need  of  a  Saviour  than  the  latter.  The  conversion 
of  the  one  will  probably  be  more  strongly  marked 
and  sudden  than  the  latter. 

' '  There  are  diversities  of  operation^  but  the  same 
Spirit  that  worketh  all  in  ally  To  some,  the 
Word  of  God  comes  like  a  hammer^  or,  as  a  fire. 
On  others  it  drops  as  the  rain^  and  distils  as  the 
dew.  Into  some  hearts  it  cuts  as  the  sword  of  the 
spirit. 

They  feel  \t  piercing  even  to  the  dividing  asiinde> 
of  the  joints  and  the  marrow.     Into  other  hearts  it 


NATURE,  NECESSITY  AND  AGENCIES.  29 

falls  as  a  seed,  aud  gently  strikes  its  roots  down- 
ward and  sends  its  shoots  upward.  Or  it  is  hid 
there  like  leaven,  and  only  slowly  and  silently 
leavens  the  whole. 

It  again  follows,  as  a  matter  of  course,  that  not 
every  one  can  tell  the  exact  time  when  and  where 
he  was  converted.  Some  can.  Zaccheus,  and  Saul 
of  Tarsus,  and  the  Philippian  jailer,  and  the  three 
thousand  on  the  day  of  Pentecost,,  and  others 
mentioned  in  the  Bible,  doubtless  could  always  tell. 
But  we  do  not  believe  that  the  apostles  of  Christ 
could  tell,  neither  could  many  others  mentioned 
in  the  Bible. 

Neither  does  the  Bible  anywhere  demand  that 
we  should.  Else  what  of  those  mentioned  above, 
who  were  children  of  God  from  infancy?  What  of 
those  who  cannot  think  of  a  time  when  they  did 
not  love  the  dear  Saviour?  Shall  we  say:  "They 
are  still  in  an  unconverted  state?"  Who  will  dare 
to  say  so? 

To  go  to  such  a  trusting  child  of  God  with  such 
a  heartless  assertion,  would  be  to  confuse  the  mind, 
to  burden  the  heart  and  to  quench  the  spirit.  It  is 
by  just  such  baseless  and  arrogant  assertions  that 
many  a  promising  spiritual  life  has  been  blighted 
in  its  budding,  blasted  in  its  growing,  and  ruined 


30  NEW  TESTAMENT  CONVERSIONS. 

in  its  fruitage.  Perplexity,  doubt,  unbelief  and 
despair  are  the  baleful  fruits  of  such  anti-scripture 
fanaticism. 

The  great  and  momentous  question  for  each  one 
is  not  when  or  how  were  you  converted,  but  are 
you  now  in  a  converted  state?  Do  you  now  mourn 
over,  hate,  endeavor  to  be  rid  of  and  confess  your 
sins?  Do  you  now  constantly  turn  to,  cling  to 
and  rest  on  Christ  as  your  only  help  and  hope? 
Do  you  ' '  die  daily ^ ' '  and  are  you  ' '  renewed  day  by 
dayV 

On  these  questions,  dear  reader,  does  your  and 
my  eternal  salvation  depend. 


SERMON   II. 


THE  CONVERSION  OF  THE  WOMAN  OF 
SAMARIA, 

John  iv.  2S,  29. 


John  iv.  28,  2g.  The  woman  then  left  her  water-pot,  and 
went  her  way  into  the  city,  and  saith  to  the  men  :  Come  see  a 
man  which  told  me  all  things  that  ever  I  did :  Is  not  this  the 
Christ  ? 


SERMON   II. 

Using  these  words  merely  as  a  standing  point 
from  which  to  look  back  over  that  whole  interest- 
ing meeting  and  conversation  between  Christ  and 
the  woman  of  Samaria,  we  enter  at  once  on  the 
subject  of  her  conversion. 

We  inquire j^rjr/,  who  was  this  woman? 

As  to  nationality,  she  was  a  Samaritan.  As  such 
she  was  a  member  of  a  despised  and  disreputable 
people. 

From  the  seventeenth  chapter  of  second  Kings 
we  learn  that  after  the  king  of  Assyria  had  carried 
captive  the  ten  tribes,  he  re-peopled  or  colonized 
their  land  with  colonies  of  heathen  from  different 
parts  of  his  kingdom.  These  idolaters  .were  soon 
troubled  by  lions,  which  the  Lord  sent  among  them 
as  a  punishment  for  their  abominable  rites.  They 
attributed  the  visitation  by  the  lions  to  their  igno- 
rance of  the  manner  of  the  God  of  the  land.  They 
petitioned  their  king  to  send  back  a  priest  of  Israel, 
that  he  might  teach  them  how  to  propitiate  "///<? 
God  of  the  land. ' '     One  of  the  apostate  priests  of 

Israel,  who  had  before  mingled  the  worship  of  the 
3  (33) 


34  NEW  TESTAMENT  CONVERSIONS. 

calves  at  Bethel  with  the  worship  of  Jehovah,  was 
sent. 

Naturally  these  heathen  dwellers  in  Samaria 
would  not  learn  a  very  pure  worship  of  the  true 
God.  ' '  They  feared  the  Lord^  and  served  their 
own  gods ^  after  the  manner  of  the  nations  zvhoin  they 
carried  away  from  thence^''''  2  Kings  xvii.  33. 
After  the  return  of  the  Jews,  when  they  began  to 
rebuild  the  temple,  these  semi-idolatrous  Samari- 
tans wanted  to  help  to  build,  and  thus  acquire 
rights  in  the  new  sanctuary.  Ezra  and  the  Jews 
wisely  refused  to  permit  such  union  effort.  From 
time  to  time  these  Samaritans  received  renegade 
Israelites  and  profligate  priests  among  them,  and 
intermarried  with  them.  By  and  by  they  built 
their  own  temple  on  Mount  Gerizim,  where  they 
established  and  maintained  a  mongrel  worship  of 
Israel's  God.  Their  religion  was  never  recognized 
by  the  Jews,  who  treated  them  as  even  worse  than 
heathen.  To  this  semi-barbarous  and  disreputable 
people  did  this  woman  belong.  Nationally,  not  a 
very  promising  subject  for  Grace. 

But  when  we  inquire  into  what  she  was  person- 
ally^ she  becomes  still  less  attractive.  Her  history 
was  a  dark  one :  she  had  had  five  husbands.  What 
became  of  all  of  them  we  do  not  know.     Worse 


THE   WOMAN   OF   SAMARIA.  35 

than  that,  she  was  now  living  with  a  man  who  was 
not  her  husband.  She  was  the  mistress  of  a  para- 
mour !  Certainly  she  had  fallen  deeply  into  degra- 
dation and  sin.  There  was  not  much  left  to  appeal 
to.  If  a  work  of  Grace  is  to  be  done  in  her  heart,^ 
the  seeds  will  have  to  be  sown,  the  life  implanted 
and  tlie  very  foundations  laid.  If  she  is  converted, 
it  will  not  be  the  return  of  a  once  regenerate  and 
now  lapsed  one,  but  the  regeneration  and  conver- 
sion of  one  dead  in  trespasses  and  sins.  Will  Jesus, 
tired,  thirsty,  hungry  and  worn  as  He  is,  pay  any 
attention  to  her?  Will  He  try  to  open  her  eyes  and 
turn  (or  convert)  her  from  darkness  to  light  and 
from  the  power  of  Satan  to  God?    Yes,  He  will. 

We  inquire,  therefore,  in  the  second  place,  how 
did  Jesus  treat  her  and  deal  with  her? 

As  He  saw  her  approach,  He  did  not  stop  to  con- 
sider her  race  or  her  character.  He  saw  in  her  a 
human  beings  with  a  soul  capable  of  being  renewed 
into  the  image  of  God.  He  did  not  stop  to  reason 
that  it  would  not  be  worth  while  to  endeavor  to 
enlighten  and  convert  this  single  individual,  when 
He  could  at  any  time  have  the  multitudes  to  crowd 
round  Him  to  hear  His  word.  Jesus  had  a  care  for 
the  individual.  He  understood  that  the  only  way 
to  reach  the  masses  is  to  reach  the  sino;le  soul.     A 


36  NEW  TESTAMENT  CONVERSIONS. 

lesson  for  all  who  have,  or  profess  to  have,  the  cure 
of  souls. 

He  preached  the  Word  to  her.  It  pleased  Him 
in  zvhom  dwelt  all  the  fulness  of  the  God-head  bodily  ^ 
who  claimed  that  His  own  words  they  are  spirit 
and  they  are  life^  by  the  foolishness  of  preaching  to 
save  them  that  believe.  In  His  own  practice  and  in 
His  instruction  and  commission  to  His  Apostles, 
He  always  went  on  the  principle  that  the  Word 
carries  the  Spirit  and  power  of  God,  and  is,  there- 
fore, the  only  instrument  for  the  effectual  conver- 
sion of  the  sinner. 

Much  depends  on  the  manner  of  using  the  Word. 
It  may  be  presented  in  such  a  way  as  to  repel.  Had 
Jesus  begun  by  at  once  railing  at  this  woman's 
false  religion  and  denouncing  her  character,  we 
believe  she  would  have  left  Him  in  bitterness  of 
heart.  It  is  interesting  and  profitable  to  notice 
His  method  of  presenting  and  applying  that  Word. 
He  first  gains  her  attention^  and  at  the  same  time 
secures  her  good  zvill  by  asking  a  favor  of  her. 
Having  thus  opened  the  way  and  in  a  manner  put 
himself  under  obligations,  He  skilfully  leads  her 
thoughts  from  the  water  of  Jacob's  well  to  the 
living  water ^  which  He  could  give.  So  artlessly 
and  yet  so  forcibly  does  He  speak  of  that  living 


THE  WOMAN   OF  SAMARIA.  37 

water  as  the  gift  of  God^  and  of  His  own  ability  to 
give  it,  that  He  wakes  in  her  heart  a  vague  longing. 

He  gives  clearness  and  proper  direction  to  that 
longing  by  showing  her  her  sin.  He  instructs  her 
that  to  get  rid  of  this  sin,  it  is  not  enough  to  out- 
wardly worship  in  the  true  Church ;  but  that  she 
must  believe  Him  and  have  the  true  spirit  express- 
ing itself  in  a  pure  worship.  Thus  He  calls  out 
that  clear,  earnest,  yearning  for  the  help  of  the 
Messiah^  which  is  called  Christ. 

This  yearning  He  now  readily  turns  into  a  joyful 
faith  by  plainly  revealing  and  declaring  Himself 
as  the  Deliverer,  the  Christ  whom  she  needs. 

What  lessons  of  pastoral  theology,  of  true  soul 
cure,  are  here !  Oh,  that  all  pastors  and  teachers 
might  learn  and  practice  them. 

We  proceed  to  notice  in  the  third  place  how  this 
woman  was  aflfected.  And  this  will  bring  to  light 
the  process  of  her  conversion. 

We  notice  how,  first  of  all,  she  becaine  interested. 
She  was  willing  to  listen  to  and  talk  with  this 
strange  Teacher.  This  is  of  prime  importance. 
We  cannot  expect  to  reach  the  careless  sinner  until 
we  get  him  interested  enough  to  gain  his  attention. 

After  her  first  rather  frivolous  question,  and  the 
earnest,  lofty  answer  of  Jesus,  she  became  more 


38  NEW  TESTAMENT  CONVERSIONS. 

serious.  She  addresses  the  stranger  as  Sir^  i.  <?., 
Rabbi^  Lord.  She  inquires  about  this  living  water, 
the  manner  of  procuring  it,  and  the  manner  of  per- 
son who  offers  it.  She  may  not  have  been  much  in 
earnest  as  yet,  still  it  is  a  point  gained  when  we  can 
get  sinners  to  inquire,  to  ask  about  spiritual  things. 

The  woman  hears  more  about  that  living  water 
and  its  wonderful  powers  to  permanently  satisfy. 
It  makes  her  think  of  her  own  life,  of  its  emptiness, 
its  toil,  and  its  weariness.  She  begins  to  experience 
an  undefined  and  vague  longing  after  something 
better.  True,  she  does  not  yet  understand  what 
she  needs.  But  she  realizes  that  her  life  is  unsatis- 
factory, that  she  needs  something.     She  is  thirsty. 

Unexpectedly,  doubtless,  but  very  clearly,  she  is 
made  to  look  back  over  her  life  and  down  into  her 
heart.  She  sees  the  darkness  of  the  one  and  the 
vileness  of  the  other.  One  word  from  Him  who 
says,  "/y  not  my  word  like  a  firef''  had  flashed  in 
and  shown  her  her  shame  and  her  sin.  She  felt, 
and  winced  as  she  felt  it,  that  His  word  is  indeed 
' '  quick^ "  i.  e.^  a  thing  of  life,  ' '  ajtd  powerful  and 
sharper  than  any  two-edged  sword^  piercing  even 
to  the  dividing  asunder  of  soul  and  spirit^  atid  of 
the  joints  and  marrow^  and  is  a  discei'-ner  of  the 
thoughts  and  intents  of  the  heart.'^''     Heb.  iv.  12. 


THE   WOMAN   OF   SAMARIA.  39 

Why  did  she  ask  that  next  question  about  the 
proper  place  to  worship?  Was  it  to  turn  aside  the 
light  of  the  Word,  to  parry  its  blows,  to  draw  off 
her  own  gaze  and  turn  aside  the  gaze  of  Jesus? 
Did  she  simply  want  to  change  the  subject?  Did 
she  desire  to  discuss  an  old  theological  question 
about  the  externals  of  worship  rather  than  have 
any  further  reference  to  her  own  sin  and  need  of 
salvation?  So  many  interpreters  have  thought, 
and  it  may  be  that  there  was  something  of  this 
spirit  in  her  question.  But  we  cannot  believe  that 
this  was  all  that  was  in  that  question.  We  believe 
that  we  must  find  a  deeper  sense  in  it.  Otherwise 
Jesus  would  not  have  treated  it  so  seriously  and  so 
instructively.  Neither  would  a  flippant  and  evas- 
ive question  fit  into  the  course  of  the  narrative. 

Her  thirst  had  been  intensified  and  properly  di- 
rected. She  realized  her  guiltiness,  her  need  of 
forgiveness  and  change.  She  now  had  full  confi- 
dence  in  the  wisdom  of  Christ,  she  recognized  Him 
as  a  divine  Prophet.  She  wanted  a  sanctuary,  a 
place  where  she  could  be  certain,  beyond  the  per- 
adventure  of  a  doubt,  that  God  was  present,  and 
would  attend  to  the  worshippers.  She  wanted  to 
pray,  to  sacrifice,  to  seek  forgiveness  and  peace. 

After  the  rather  full  and  deep  answer  of  Jesus, 


40  NEW  TESTAMENT  CONVERSIONS. 

she  plaintively  expresses  her  heart's  longing  for 
' '  the  Messias  which  is  called  Christ. ' '  Like  the 
two  disciples  who  afterwards  walked  with  Him  on 
the  way  to  Emmaus,  her  heart  burned  within  her  as 
He  talked  with  her,  and  she  knew  Him  not.  Her 
faith  was  not  yet  intelligent.  But  out  of  a  peni- 
tent heart  the  tendrils  of  faith  were  reaching  up 
and  feeling  after  something  to  grasp  and  cling  to. 
Faith  was  coming  by  hearings  and  heariiig  by  the 
Word  of  God. 

She  was  now  ready  to  hear  the  full  Gospel, 
which  reveals  the  Messias  which  is  called  Christ. 
Jesus  says  to  her,  ' '  /  that  speak  to  thee  am  He. ' ' 

She  at  once  recognizes  and  accepts  Him  as  the 
Christ,  her  Saviour.  And  is  not  this  true  faith? 
Does  any  one  doubt  it  ?  If  so,  see  how  that  faith  at 
once  proved  itself. 

She  immediately  left  her  water-pot — she  forgot, 
for  a  time,  her  temporal  affairs.  She  had  found 
better  water  than  that  in  Jacob's  well. 

lyike  the  disciples,  when  they  recognized  the  call 
of  Jesus,    they  left   their   boats   and   fishing-nets.  , 
Like  Matthew,  who  on  a  similar  occasion  left  the 
receipt  of  customs,  so  this  new  disciple  leaves  her 
water-pot. 

She   hurries  into   her   city,   where   she   is  well 


THE   WOMAN   OF   SAMARIA.  4I 

known.  She  turns  evangelist.  She  invites  the 
men  to  ' '  come. ' '  She  tells  them  of  the  Christ  whom 
she  has  found.  She  makes  known  to  them  that  He 
' '  told  her  all  she  ever  did. ' '  Thereby  she  con  fesses 
her  sin,  and  expresses  her  penitence.  She  assures 
them  that  this  is  the  Christ.  Thus  she  professes 
her  faith,  and  thus  her  faith  is  beautifully  bearing 
fruit.  She  is  truly  converted.  Her  conversion  be- 
comes the  occasion  of  many  others.  As  in  David's 
time,  ' '  TJicn  will  I  teach  transgressors  thy  ways 
and  sinners  shall  be  converted  unto  thee.^''  Jesus 
remains  two  days  in  that  city,  reaps  a  glorious 
harvest  there.  During  these  two  days  He  no» 
doubt  further  instructs  the  woman  of  Samaria,  and 
her  faith  becomes  more  intelligent. 

A  few  closing  reflections.  This  was  the  conver- 
sion of  a  bad  woman.  Let  no  one  say  that  such  or 
such  a  one  is  a  hopeless  case.  Let  no  sinner  say, 
"My  case  is  hopeless."  He  can  and  does,  save  to 
the  ntterniost^  all  that  come  nnto  God  tJirongh  Him. 

This  conversion  was  brought  about  by  the  Word. 
So  is  every  true  conversion.  Its  elements  were 
penitence  and  faith.  These  are  the  component 
elements  of  every  conversion. 

Reader,  are  you  converted?     Have  you  in  your 

heart  true  sorrow  for  and  hatred  of  sin  ?     Do  vour 
3* 


42  NEW  TESTAMENT  CONVERSIONS. 

sins  trouble  you?  Do  you  die  daily?  Are  you 
constantly  turning  to  Him  and  resting  in  Him  who 
is  the  Christ,  the  Saviour  of  the  world  ?  Are  you 
in  an  unconverted  state?  Can  you  and  do  you 
laugh  at  your  sins?  Are  they  as  trifles  to  you? 
Would  you  be  converted  ?  Come  to  the  Word ! 
Hear  it.  Read  it.  Ponder  it.  It  will  bring  about, 
if  prayerfully  used  and  not  resisted,  a  vivid  sense 
of  your  lost,  ruined  and  guilty  state.  It  will  also 
beget  a  saving  and  appropriating  faith  in  Christ. 
"  Turn  yoii^  tiLvn  you;  for  why  will  you  die?'''* 

Beside  tlie  well  at  noon-tide 

I  hear  a  sad  one  say, 
"  I  want  that  living  water, 

Give  me  to  drink,  I  pray ; 

The  well  is  deep,  O  PUgrim, 

But  deeper  is  my  need  ; 
I  thirst  for  Life  eternal 

The  '  Gift  of  God '  indeed." 

Ho  every  one  that  thirsteth, 

The  living  water  buy ! 
Ye  blessed  ones  that  hunger, 

Take  eat,  and  never  die. 


SERMON  III. 


THE  CONVERSION  OF  THE  PRODIGAL  SON- 

Luke  xv.  17-20. 


Luke  XV.  iy-20.  And  when  he  came  to  himself,  he  said, 
How  many  hired  servants  of  my  father's  have  bread  enough 
and  to  spare,  and  I  perish  with  hunger.  I  will  arise  and  go  to 
my  father,  and  will  say  unto  him.  Father,  I  have  sinned  against 
heaven,  and  before  thee,  and  am  no  more  worthy  to  be  called 
thy  son  :  make  me  as  one  of  thy  hired  servants.  And  he  arose, 
and  came  to  his  father. 


SERMON   III. 

Somebody  has  said  :  "If  I  could  have  only  one 
book  of  the  Bible,  and  had  my  choice,  I  would 
select  as  that  book  the  Gospel  of  St.  Luke." 
When  asked  why  he  would  select  this  book  above 
all  others,  he  said:  "Because  of  the  fifteentii 
chapter." 

We  cannot  find  much  fault  with  this  choice. 
This  is  indeed  a  rich  and  precious  chapter.  Its 
three  parables  are  radiant  with  the  reflections  of 
the  glowing  love  of  the  Father's  heart. 

If  it  were  possible  to  narrow  down  the  choice 
still  more  closely,  and  where  all  is  so  supremely 
excellent  to  select  the  most  excellent,  we  would 
unhesitatingly  select  the  parabolic  story  of  the 
wandering,  returning  and  welcomed  prodigal. 
This  parable  has  well  been  called  "the  Gospel  in 
the  Gospel" — the  Gospel  in  a  nutshell. 

The  whole  parable  naturally  divides  itself  into 
two  parts:  First,  the  part  that  delineates  the 
younger  son;  and  second,  the  part  that  portrays 
the  elder  son. 

The  former  part  again  naturally  subdivides  it- 

(45) 


46  NEW  TESTAMENT  CONVERSIONS. 

self  into  three  parts.  The  first  shows  us  the  wilful 
departure  from  a  loving  parent  and  good  home  of 
the  wayward  youth.  It  pictures  to  us  the  wilful 
departure  of  the  sinner  from  God.  The  second 
portrays  the  wanderer's  return,  portraying  for  us 
the  sinner's  conversion.  The  third  part  paints  in 
vivid  colors  the  reception  of  the  returning  one. 

We  propose  to  consider  more  particularly  the 
second  point,  viz:  the  prodigal's  return,  or  con- 
version; for  a  turning  round,  or  returning,  is  a 
conversion.  Before  entering  upon  the  process  of 
the  conversion  itself,  we  would  further  remark, 
that  this  conversion  differs  from  some  others  re- 
corded in  the  New  Testament.  This  is  the  return- 
ing of  one  who  once  enjoyed  a  good  home,  a  father's 
love  and  care.  He  had  a  birth-right  in  that  home, 
but  renounced  it  and  the  father  who  gave  it.  The 
father,  however,  had  not  yet  renounced  him. 

In  the  case  of  the  Samaritan  woman,  we  had  the 
conversion  of  one  who,  as  far.  as  we  know,  had 
never  had  a  birth-right  in  a  spiritual  home.  She 
had  always  been  a  stranger  to  the  covenant  and 
an  alien  from  the  household  of  faith.  Hers  was 
the  regeneration  and  conversion  of  a  sinner:  this 
is  rather  the  conversion  or  restoration  of  a  once  re- 
generate,   but    now   lapsed    one.     That    was    the 


THE   PRODIGAL   SON.  47 

bringing  to  God  for  the  first  time  of  a  sinner: 
this  is  the  coming  back  of  a  wanderer  who  was 
once  baptized  into  Christ,  enjoyed  some  Christian 
nurture,  and  was,  perhaps,  confirmed  in  the  church. 

We  would  further  note,  as  preliminary  to  the  ex- 
position that  particular  parables  are  intended  to 
bring  out  and  specially  portray  different  phases  or 
features  of  the  same  truth.  Some,  e.  g. ,  that  of 
the  great  supper,  are  intended  to  show  more  espec- 
ially the  part  that  God  works  in  the  bringing  back 
of  the  sinner.  Others,  as  the  one  before  us,  are 
intended  to  emphasize  the  process  in  the  sinner, 
and  the  manner  of  its  manifestation.  The  divine 
side,  the  efforts  and  means  of  Grace,  are,  therefore, 
only  incidentally  shown. 

Turning  now  to  the  conversion  of  the  prodigal, 
we  divide  the  process  into  three  steps. 

The  first  step  was :  He  began  to  think.  There- 
tofore he  didn't  want  to  think.  If  a  reproachful 
thought,  or  a  memory  of  the  past,  would  occasion- 
ally flit  through  his  mind,  he  made  positive  efforts 
to  shake  it  off.  It  was,  doubtless,  partly  to  prevent 
or  drown  all  sober,  seitous  thought,  that  he 
plunged  so  heedlessly  into  dissipation.  Thinking 
would  disturb  his  wild  enjoyment.  It  would 
make  him  uneasv.     It  would  rob  him  of  what  he 


48  NEW  TESTAMENT  CONVERSIONS. 

called  his  peace.  And,  therefore,  he  did  not  wish 
to  think. 

Is  it  not  always  thus?  Will  any  wilful,  wayward 
wanderer  sit  down  quietly  and  think  of  himself,  his 
life,  and  his  God?  Dare  he?  No.  On  the  con- 
trary, he  will  use  every  endeavor  to  prevent  serious 
thought,  or  to  banish  it,  when  it  comes  unbidden. 

But  God  was  training  that  prodigal.  He  desired 
to  make  him  think.  He  permitted  him,  or  may 
we  not  say  He  led  him,  to  taste  the  bitter  fruits  of 
his  own  sin. 

He  began  to  be  in  want.  This  was  intended  to 
make  him  pause  and  think.  So  God  often  dis- 
ciplines the  sinner.  He  sends  privations,  losses, 
disappointments,  diseases  or  death.  These  afflictive 
dispensations  are  not  in  themselves  means  of  Grace. 
They  do  not  carry  saving  virtue.  But  they  are  in- 
tended to  prepare  the  careless  for  the  reception  of 
the  means  of  Grace.  They  are  designed  to  make 
the  thoughtless  think. 

He  came  to  himself.  He  had  been  beside  him- 
self The  inconsiderate  and  careless  sinner  is  not 
in  his  right  mind.  Whtn  he  has  been  made  will- 
ing to  consider,  to  think,  to  remember,  then  he 
comes  to  himself,  and  in  coming  to  himself,  he  is 
beginning  to  come  to  his  God. 


THE   PRODIGAL  SON.  49 

Look  at  that  prodigal !  He  has  come  to  want 
He  is  herding  swine.  He  is  hungry.  He  craves 
the  husks^  the  pods  of  the  carob-tree,  on  which  the 
swine  are  feeding.  He  begins  to  consider  the  sit- 
uation. He  looks  at  himself  He  is  covered  with 
rags  and  filth.  He  looks  over  his  life.  What  a 
loving  father  gave,  he  has  wasted  in  riotous  living. 
He  looks  into  his  heart.  He  sees  its  vileness  and 
its  ungratefuJ  meanness.  His  thoughts  go  back  to 
what  he  once  was.  He  recalls  his  home.  That 
father-heart  and  father-love— those  fatherly  coun- 
sels and  admonitions  !  He  remembers  it  all.  He 
thinks  it  all  over. 

Here  we  incidentally  see  that  it  is  the  work  of 
the  Word.  And  it  is  thus  the  sinner  is  brought 
to  himself  He  remembers  that  he  was  baptized 
into  Christ,  and  set  apart  for  the  kingdom  of  God. 
He  recalls  the  holy  lessons  he  once  learned  and 
loved.  He  recollects  the  prayers,  the  counsels  and 
admonitions  of  years  gone  by.  He  contrasts  with 
all  that  his  present  life,  his  heart,  his  whole  self 
He  is  coming  to  himself  He  is  beginning  to 
think.  An  important  point  is  gained.  He  has 
taken  the  first  step  in  his  conversion. 

We  do  not  know  how  long  the  prodigal  had  been 
thinking,  or  how  long  he  had  fought  against  sober. 


50  NEW  TESTAMENT  CONVERSIONS. 

serious  thought.  It  may  have  been  many  days 
since  he  began.  It  may  have  been  very  reluctant 
and  timid  thinking  at  first.  It  may  have  been 
weeks  and  months  since  the  first  serious  and  un- 
welcome thought  had  crossed  his  mind.  Little  by 
little,  in  quietness  and  alone,  he  pondered,  till  at 
last  he  fully  came  to  himself.  The  first  step  was 
taken. 

The  second  step  in  his  conversion,  was  that  he 
began  to  feel. 

We  hear  him  talking  to  himself.  He  speaks  of 
his  own  unworthiness.  With  him  these  are  not 
mere  words.  In  public,  men  often  make  confes- 
sions and  acknowledgments  for  effect.  They  are 
mere  words.  Not  so  with  him  who  is  alone,  who 
is  musing  out  of  a  full  heart,  whose  heart  is  so 
full  that  his  lips  speak  almost  unconsciously.  He 
can  say:   While  I  mused  the  fire  burned. 

The  prodigal  felt  his  unworthiness,  his  ungrate- 
fulness, his  meanness.  He  loathed  himself.  He 
felt  he  was  vile.  He  also  felt  the  load  and  burden 
of  guilt.  /  have  sinned.^  sinned  against  heaven^ 
am  guilty  in  God's  sight;  I  deserve  punishment, 
am  no  more  worthy  to  be  called  a  son^  forfeited  my 
sonship,  sold  my  birthright,  deserve  to  be  cast 
out,   disinherited,   disowned.     These,   we  believe, 


THE   PRODIGAL  SON.  5I 

were  tlie  feelings  of  his  heart.  It  was  a  true 
mourning  over  sin.  It  was  godly  soi^row^  working 
that  repentance  that  needeth  not  to  be  repented  of. 
He  was  a  penitent,  and  penitence  is  the  first  part 
of  conversion.  It  manifested  itself  in  his  case  in 
first  thinking  of  the  father,  his  love  and  his  coun- 
sels. He  then  thought  of  himself,  his  heart  and 
his  life.  He  contrasted  self  with  the  father  and  the 
father's  word.  He  saw  his  sin.  His  thinking 
made  him  feel.  It  awoke  a  consciousness  of  un- 
worthiness  and  self-abhorrence.  It  made  him  feel 
his  guilt  and  the  deservedness  of  punishment. 
This  is  God's  way  of  dealing  with  the  sinner.  He 
makes  him  think,  thinking  leads  to  feeling,  the 
heart  is  reached  through  the  head,  the  judgment 
is  informed,  and  through  it  the  conscience  stirred 
and  the  heart  moved.  When  Paul  was  sent  to  con- 
vert the  Gentiles,  he  was  commissioned  "/<?  open 
their  eyes  and  to  turn — /.  e.  to  convert — thein  from 
darkness  to  light.''''  The  first  thing  then  was  to 
open  their  eyes,  /.  e.  to  enlighten  or  instruct  them; 
and  this  is  the  only  true  way.  Instruction  must 
come  first.  There  must  be  knowledge,  something 
to  think  about;  then  the  feeling  will  come  of  its 
own  accord.  Those  who  would  begin  with  the 
feelings,  who  aim  to  arouse  and  excite  the  sinner 


52  NEW  TESTAMENT  CONVERSIONS. 

whom  they  desire  to  convert,  are  beginning  at  the 
wrong  end.  They  are  proceeding  in  a  method  that 
is  contrary  to  the  laws  of  the  mind,  as  well  as  con- 
trary to  the  Word  of  God.  Rational  feeling  is  the 
product  of  rational  thinking. 

We  go  on  to  notice  the  third  and  final  step  in  the 
prodigal's  conversion.     He  began  to  turn. 

In  all  his  wanderings  he  had  been  turned  away 
from  his  father  and  away  from  his  real  self.  He 
was  unwilling  to  turn  even  his  thoughts  back  to  his 
father  or  in  on  himself  But  now  he  was  turning. 
His  thoughts  were  looking  homeward  and  inward. 
His  feelings  also,  so  deep  within  him,  were  begin- 
ning to  reach  out  toward  his  home.  His  heart 
was  yearning  for  that  father's  pardon  and  love. 

As  he  thought  and  longed,  he  remembered  his 
father's  goodness.  He  became  convinced  that  the 
father  was  merciful.  His  heart  reached  out  tow- 
ards that  mercy;  it  grasped  it  and  was  ready  to 
throw  itself  upon  it.  He  had  no  self-justification. 
He  pleaded  no  excuse  or  extenuation.  He  didn't 
say  he  would  go  back  and  say  he  couldn't  help  it, 
it  was  the  fault  of  others  who  led  him  astray.  No, 
no;  he  frames  no  plea  for  self,  he  trusts  only  in  the 
father's  mercy ^  he  wants  only  pai'don.  He  rises, 
he  turns,  he  hastens  to  receive  that  pardon. 


THE   PRODIGAL   SON.  53 

And  what  is  this  turning  towards  the  mercy  of 
the  father?  What  is  \t  hnt  faith?  Yes,  it  is  the 
outgrowth  of  penitence,  and  that  is  always  faith; 
and  penitence  and  faith  together  are  conversion. 
The  prodigal  has  turned  to  his  father.  His  turn- 
ing is  believing.  Where  there  is  believing  there 
is  conversion. 

lyook  at  it. 

It  began  in  pondering  the  blessings  and  counsels 
of  his  home  days.  The  Word  of  our  heavenly 
Father,  even  when  silently  pondered,  is  a  means 
of  Grace,  a  bearer  of  the  Spirit. 

His  thinking  wrought  feelings  of  unworthiness; 
a  sense  of  guilt;  a  hatred  of  his  sin,  and  a  longing 
for  deliverance. 

This  turned  his  thought  and  heart  to  his  father; 
it  made  him  lay  hold  of  the  remembered  mercy; 
it  made  him  aiHse  and  go.  It  brought  him  to  his 
father. 

The  thoughts  and  feelings  of  his  heart  were  al- 
already  framed  in  words  for  his  lips.  He  confesses: 
true  faith  always  confesses.  With  tJie  heart  man 
believeth  unto  righteousness^  and  with  the  mouth 
confession  is  made  unto  salvation. 

Look  at  the  reception  of  the  returning  one.  Will 
the  father  receive  him?     He  comes  in  rajrs  and 


54  NEW  TESTAMENT  CONVERSIONS. 

filth.  He  carries  the  handwriting  of  sin  on  his 
countenance.  The  mark  of  Cain  is  there.  He 
looks  degraded  and  vile.  Will  not  the  father  shut 
the  door  in  his  face?  Will  he  not  tell  him,  "You 
made  your  bed,  now  lie  in  it?"  Will  he  do  like 
many  an  earthly  father  has  done?  Look  and  see. 
The  old  father  has  been  waiting  and  watching. 
When  he  is  yet  a  great  way  off^  the  father  sees  him ; 
he  runs  to  meet  him;  he  falls  on  his  neck;  he  kisses 
him;  he  calls  him  ''''my  sonP'' 

Oh  yes,  the  son  had  tried  to  forget  the  father, 
but  the  father  had  not  for  a  moment  forgotten  or 
disowned  the  son.  The  baptized  one  may  forget, 
he  may  repudiate  his  side  of  the  covenant,  but  God 
never  forgets  or  breaks  His  side.  He  is  ever  ready 
to  welcome  back  the  penitent  one;  to  give  him  the 
kiss  of  forgiveness ;  to  own  him  as  ' '  my  son^ "  "  my 
daughter. ' ' 

Notice  how  eagerly  the  two  come  together.  On 
the  part  of  the  son,  there  is  no  struggling,  no 
wrestling,  no  pleading,  no  penitential  season  of 
waiting,  and  working,  and  getting  through.  On 
the  part  of  the  father,  no  holding  back,  no  barring 
of  the  door,  no  refusing  to  hear  or  to  heed,  no  re- 
luctant opening  at  last,  because  the  son  is  about 
ready  to  frantically  break  in.  Surely  no  modern 
revivalist  drew  that  picture! 


THE  PRODIGAL  SON.  55 

Dear  reader:    Are  you   a   wanderer?     Are   you 
now   away   from    the    Father-home   and    Father- 
heart?     Are  you  sojourning  in  that  far  country, 
that  wild,  waste  land,  where  God  is  not?     Is  there 
sometimes  a  thought  of  former  and  better  days — a 
pang  of  home-sickness?     Do  you  sometimes  realize 
that  you  are  in  want?     Do  you  perhaps  recall  the 
prayers  once,  in  the  dim  and  distant  past,  lisped  at 
a  mother's  knee?     Do  there  come  at  times  echoes 
of  the  stories  and  sayings  of  Jesus,  which  then  fell 
into  eager  ears  and  a  receptive  heart?     Do  there 
flit  occasionally  across  memory's  canvas,  unsought 
images  of  childhood's  Lord's  Days,  of  the  walk  to 
the  Sunday-school,  of  the  teacher,  the  lessons,  the 
hymns  and  prayers?     Do  you  see  again  the  sainted 
pastor,  and  hear  again  those  words  that  then  were 
sacred  with  a  heavenly  sound?     Has  the  church- 
bell  ever  startled   you?     Does  the  sight  of  others 
going  joyfully  to  the  sanctuary  of  God  make  you 
restless?     Oh,  do  not  shake  off  these  serious  im- 
pressions.    Cherish    them !     Take   down    the   old 
Bible  and  catechism:    begin  to  think;   think  till 
you  feel ;  feel  till  you  loathe  yourself,  and  long  for 
deliverance.     Look  then  to  mercy  as  it  shines  from 
the  cross.     Turn  to  the  Crucified ;  there  the  Father 
will  meet  you.     He  is  waiting.     He  is  coming  to 


56  NEW  TESTAMENT  CONVERSIONS. 

meet  you.  He  is  standing  before  you.  Accept 
Him,  Receive  His  advances.  Call  Him  Father. 
He  calls  you  son.  He  kisses  you  with  the  kiss  of 
pardon  and  adoption. 

Come  home  !     Come  home  ! 
You  are  weary  at  heart, 
For  the  way  has  been  dark, 
And  so  lonely  and  wild. 
O  Prodigal  Child,  come  home  ! 

Come  home  !     Come  home  ! 
From  the  sorrow  and  blame, 
From  the  sin  and  the  shame 
And  the  tempter  that  smiled. 
O  Prodigal  Child,  come  home  ! 

Come  home  !  Come  home  ! 
There  is  bread  and  to  spare, 
And  a  warm  welcome  there. 
Then,  to  friends  reconciled, 
O  Prodigal  Child,  come  home  ! 


SERMON  IV. 


THE  CONVERSION  OF  THE  PUBLICAN. 

Luke  xviii.  13. 


Luke  xviii.  13.  And  the  publican  standing  afar  oflF,  would 
not  lift  up  so  mucii  as  his  eyes  unto  heaven  ;  but  smote  upon 
his  breast,  saying,  God  be  merciful  unto  me  a  sinner. 


SERMON   IV. 

We  have  before  us  a  character  sketch,  drawn  by 
a  master  hand.  With  a  few  words,  two  represen- 
tative persons,  quite  opposite  in  heart  and  life,  are 
made  to  stand  before  us  in  life-like  colors.  It  is  a 
double  picture,  drawn  by  Him  who  could  portray 
the  inner  and  outer  man  as  none  else  can,  because 
He  knew  what  was  in  man^  and  needed  not  that  any 
one  should  tell  Hhn. 

It  is  no  wonder  that  those  writers  who  have  best 
succeeded  in  delineating  human  nature — as  c.  g. 
Shakespeare — have  been  close  students  of  the 
Bible.  No  other  book  uncovers  and  lays  bare  the 
secret  springs  of  the  human  heart  like  this  book. 
No  other  master  can  portray  the  hidden  impulses 
and  motives  of  humanity  like  He  who  made  man. 
For  the  same  reason  none  else  could  so  truthfully 
and  vividly  show  the  out-workings  and  manifesta- 
tions of  the  spirit  within. 

He  in  whom  dwelt  all  the  fitlness  of  the  God-head 
bodily^  has  with  a  few  master  strokes,  drawn  for  us 
the  pictures  of  the  Pharisee  and  the  Publican. 
These  pictures  are  set  before  us  for  our  instruction 

(59) 


6o  NEW  TESTAMENT   CONVERSIONS. 

and  profit.  We  are  to  contemplate  them.  We  are 
to  be  warned  by  the  one:  we  are  to  be  instructed 
and  drawn  to  imitation  by  the  other. 

We  desire  for  ^the  present  to  look  more  particu- 
larly at  the  second  picture,  and  consider  the  conver- 
sion o/  the  publican. 

We  will  consider  first  one  of  the  greatest  hinder- 
ances  to  conversion — we  mean  self-righteousness. 
We  see  this  delineated  and  manifested  in  the 
Pharisee.  We,  therefore,  study  him  as  contrasted 
with  the  Publican.  The  Pharisee  is  self-righteous- 
ness personified.  We  see  it  standing  before  us. 
We  see  how  it  lives  and  moves  and  exalts  itself 
toward  heaven.  We  see  what  it  is  and  whence  it 
springs. 

It  is  a  complacent  satisfaction  with  self  It  is 
an  unctuous  self-flattery.  It  is  a  magnifying  of 
one's  supposed  virtues.  It  is  a  wilful  blindness  to 
one's  own  faults.  It  is  greatest  in  negative  virtues. 
Its  passive  virtues  are  trifles  magnified.  Look  at 
and  listen  to  that  Pharisee.  He  goes  up  to  the 
temple,  he  considers  himself  a  religious  man,  he 
professes  to  pray ;  but  what  a  prayer!  There  is  no 
word  of  confession,  except  a  confession  of  other 
people's  sins.  There  is  no  breath  of  petition.  He 
stands  forth  boldly  and  prominently.     He  begins 


THE   PUBLICAN.  6l 

with  thanksgiving,  but  he  does  not  thank  for  mercy, 
for  Grace,  for  blessings  received;  he  is  so  full  of  self 
and  self-sufficiency,  that  he  can  only  thank  for 
what  he  is  and  what  he  does,  in  contrast  with 
others.  He  delights  to  compare  himself  with  the 
common  herd.  He  first  tells  the  Lord  what  he 
does  not  do.  He  is  not  an  extortioner.  He  is  in 
no  sense  unjust.  He  is  too  pure  to  ever  be  capable 
of  committing  adultery.  He  can  best  sum  up  his 
goodness  by  thanking  the  Lord  he  is  not  like  this 
Publican.  Such  is  self-righteousness,  a  fearful 
disease  of  fallen  humanity,  one  of  the  greatest 
hinderances  to  its  restoration. 

It  is  well  that  we  understand  this  disease.  There 
are  few  places  in  the  Word  of  God  that  so  clearly 
describe  it,  as  does  this  parable.  It  will  be  profit- 
able for  us  to  look  into  it  a  little  more  deeply. 

What  are  the  roots  of  self-righteousness?  There 
are  two  main  roots.  One  is  a  shallow  view  of  God 
and  His  law.  The  other  is  a  superficial  under- 
standing of  sin  and  self. 

This  was  the  trouble  with  this  Pharisee,  and 
indeed  with  all  the  Pharisees  of  Christ's  day.  He 
did  not  realize  the  august,  sublime  and  holy  nature 
of  the  Being  whom  he  so  bluntly  and  boldly  ad- 
dressed.    Had  he  had  even  a  faint  conception  of 


62  NEW  TESTAMENT  CONVERSIONS. 

Him  whose  eyes  are  like  flames  of  fii'-e^  too  ptire  to 
behold  iniquity  or  look  upon  sin  with  allowance — had 
he  understood  even  remotely,  how  the  very  nature  of 
God  shrinks  from  and  abhors  sin,  that  He  is  so  in- 
expressibly pure  that  He  chaj^ges  His  angels  with 
folly ^  and  that  the  very  heavens  are  tuiclean  in  His 
sight — had  he  even  approximately  known  that  the 
whole  past  history  of  Israel,  the  whole  service  of 
that  temple  in  which  he  stood,  was  intended  to 
teach  God's  holiness — had  he,  in  short,  under- 
stood the  nature  of  God,  he  could  not  have  done  as 
he  did. 

Because  he  did  not  understand  God's  nature, 
therefore,  he  did  not  at  all  know  God's  law.  In 
boasting  of  his  own  good  deeds,  which  he  doubtless 
regarded  as  a  fulfilling  of  the  law,  there  is  not  a 
word  oi  fearing^  loving  or  trusting  in  God.  In- 
deed, the  whole  first  table  is  deliberately  passed 
over.  He  flatters  himself  that  he  has  kept  the  law 
because  he  has  abstained  from  the  gross  acts  of 
extortion,  adultery  and  injustice.  He  mentions 
two  positive  virtues.  He  boasts  of  these  as  marks 
of  supererogation,  as  doing  even  more  than  the 
law  demanded.  Had  he  heard  and  understood  the 
Sermon  on  the  Mount,  he  could  not  have  imagined 
that  he  kept  the  law. 


THE  PUBLICAN,  63 

Because  he  did  not  understand  the  spirit  of  the 
law,  therefore,  he  did  not  know  what  sin  is.  To 
him  sin  consisted  in  the  outward  acts  of  the  hand, 
the  tongue,  the  stomach,  or  other  bodily  organs. 
He  did  not  realize  that  sin  is  really  a  matter  of  the 
heart  and  spirit.  He  had  not  learned  that  hist  or 
desire  is  sin.  Had  he  known  what  sin  is,  in  its 
essence  and  nature,  he  would  not  have  dared  to  so 
stand  before  God.  Knowing  not  what  sin  is,  he 
had  no  conception  of  the  sinfulness  and  desperate 
wickedness  of  his  own  heart.  He  did  not  know 
himself.  Thus  his  ignorance  of  God  and  His  law, 
and  his  ignorance  of  self  and  sin,  made  him  self- 
righteous. 

Self-righteousness  was  the  greatest  obstacle  our 
Saviour  had  to  contend  with.  It  was  characteristic 
of  the  Scribes  and  Pharisees.  He  could  reach  and 
gatlier  in  Publicans,  and  sinners,  but  He  reached 
very  few  Pharisees.  To  them  He  said:  ^'' The  Pub- 
licans and  hai'Iots  go  into  the  kingdom  of  God  before 
you. ' ' 

Self-righteousness  is  the  great  obstacle  to  the 
Church's  progress  to-day.  Our  age  is  sadly  afflicted 
with  this  malady.  It  has  crept  into  many  popular 
churches.  The  holiness  of  God  and  the  sinfulness 
of  sin  are  too  little  understood  and  realized.     Con- 


64  NEW   TESTAMENT   CONVERSIONS. 

sequently  Christ  is  too  little  appreciated.  Repent- 
ance and  faith  are  not  preached  as  they  should  be. 
Superficial  expedients  are  tried  to  gather  in  sinners. 
Self-righteousness  is  not  exposed  and  dislodged. 
True  conversions  are  comparatively  rare. 

The  Church  can  stoop  down  and  pick  up  the 
fallen  out  of  the  filth  and  mire  of  sin,  when  such 
are  brought  to  realize  their  sin.  But  the  Church 
cannot  reach,  Christ  cannot  save  men,  as  long  as 
they  trust  in  themselves  that  they  are  righteous^  and 
despise  others. 

The  only  remedy  for  this  dire  malady  is  the 
Word  of  God.  That  sword  of  the  Spirit  must  cut 
in  and  lay  bare  the  corruption  and  soreness  of  the 
deceitful  and  desperately  wicked  heart.  It  must 
pierce  eveji  to  the  dividing  asunder  of  the  joints 
and  marrow^  and  discern  the  thoughts  and  intents 
of  the  heart.  '  ''By  the  law  is  the  kiiowledge  of  sin. ' ' 
Through  the  Word  the  Holy  Spirit  convinces  the 
world  of  sin  ^  of  righteousness  and  of  judgment. 

This  living  Word,  carrying  the  Spirit's  life,  had 
certainly  done  its  preparatory  work  in  the  heart  of 
the  Publican,  to  whom  we  now  turn. 

We  believe  that  we  see  in  him  a  product  of  the 
power  of  the  Word.  It  had  prepared  his  heart: 
although  our  parable  does  not  definitely  mention 


'  THE  PUBLICAN.  65 

this,  we  reason  from  the  effect  to  the  cause.  It 
was  now  converting  that  heart.  We  see  in  that 
heart  the  workings  first  of  penitence  and  then  of 
faith.  Notice  the  penitence  as  manifested  first  in 
his  actions. 

He  stood  afar  off.  He  felt  himself  unfit  to  ap- 
proach too  near  the  Holy  place — like  some  outcast, 
coming  into  a  church  and  standing  by  the  door,  as 
if  too  base  to  enter  farther  into  the  house  of  God. 

How  opposite  to  the  Pharisee,  who  stood  forth 
conspicuously,  doubtless  as  near  the  Holiest  place 
as  possible! 

He  zvould  not  so  innch  as  lift  his  eyes  unto  heaven. 
Uuworthy  and  ashamed  to  look  up,  he  casts  his 
eyes  upon  the  ground.  Ashamed  because  of  his 
sin,  bowed  down  with  a  sense  of  guilt,  his  very  at- 
titude is  a  confession  of  sin  and  sorrow  therefor. 

Blessed'shame!  It  is  a  hopeful  symptom.  The 
blush  of  shame  because  of  sin,  has  well  been 
called  the  morning  dawn  of  a  new  life.  Ezra  said: 
"/  am  ashamed.^  and  blush  to  lift  np  my  face  nnto 
Thee.''''  Job  said:  "/  am  vile.''''  Jeremiah  com- 
plained of  the  impenitent  Jews:  "  They  zvere  not  at 
all  ashamed.^  neither  could  they  blusJi.''^  And 
again:  '"'' Thoic  hadst  a  whore'' s  forehead^  thou  re- 
fusedst  to  be  ashamed. ' ' 
4* 


66  NEW  TESTAMENT  CONVERSIONS. 

The  Publican  smote  upon  his  breast.  As  if  to  in- 
dicate, "here  is  the  sore  spot,  here  is  the  impure 
heart,  here  is  the  seat  of  sin."  To  him  sin  did  not 
consist  in  a  few  outward  acts.  To  him  it  was,  first 
of  all,  a  diseased  and  defiled  condition  of  his  very 
being.  It  was  not  so  much  the  sins  of  the  hand  or 
tongue  that  worried  him,  but  the  sinful  heart  from 
which  those  sprung.     He  smote  upon  his  breast. 

By  this  he  further  indicated  that  he  deserved 
smiting.  As  a  transgressor,  he  felt  guilty.  As 
guilty,  he  felt  worthy  of  stripes.  As  justly  subject 
to  punishment,  he  smote  upon  his  breast.  His 
actions  betokened  penitence. 

So  did  his  words.  He  designates  himself  '"a 
sinner.''''  More  literally  translated,  the  sinner,  or 
the  sinful  one.  As  though  he  had  been  a  sinner 
above  all  others.  As  though  he  had  been  the  only 
one.  Here  was  a  strong  confession  of  individual 
and  personal  guilt.  It  was  more  than  a  general 
confession  of  general  sinfulness.  It  was  self-con- 
demnation. It  expressed  in  words  what  had  been 
shown  in  acts. 

This  singling  of  himself  out  as  the  chief  of  sin- 
ners is  the  very  essence  of  a  thorough  repentance. 
When  the  sinner  sees  himself  as  standing  apart 
from  a  sinful  race,  as  justly  condemned  for  personal 


THE   PUBLICAN.  67 

guilt,  then  has  lie  been  enlightened  from  on  high, 
convinced  of  sin  by  the  Spirit  of  God. 

It  is  this  sense  of  personal  guilt  and  condemna- 
tion to  which  all  must  come.  There  is  no  true 
conversion  without  it.  A  general  confession  is 
easily  made.  It  is  not  so  hard  to  believe  that  all 
are  sinners.  But  it  is  quite  another  matter  to  real- 
ize and  feel,  "/am  a  sinner,"  "I  am  the  sinner," 
"I  am  the  chief  oi  sinners,"  "Sin  in  the  abstract 
has  become  concrete  in  me."  Such  was  the  Publi- 
can's confession.     He  was  truly  penitent. 

But  his  penitence  grew  into  faith.  True  peni- 
tence is  the  root  of  faith,  and  true  faith  is  the  fruit 
of  penitence. 

We  see  his  faith  in  his  plea  for  mercy.  Like  the 
penitent  prodigal,  when  he  thinks  of  his  father,  he 
remembers  and  ponders  the  one  trait  of  mercy — so 
this  Publican.  His  eye  is  cast  down,  but  his 
bowed  heart  cries  upward.  He  calls  to  mind  that 
God  is  merciful.  His  heart  yearns  for  mercy. 
While  his  mind  thinks  of  mercy,  his  heart  reaches 
out  for  it. 

Mercy  is  something  unmerited.  It  cannot  in- 
deed be  earned.  What  is  earned  or  paid  for  cannot 
be  mercy.  It  cannot  be  bought.  It  can  only  be 
received  as  a  free  gift.     Faith  is  a  turning  towards 


68  NEW  TESTAMENT  CONVERSIONS. 

and  laying  hold  of  mercy.  Self-righteousness  asks 
for  rights.     It  demands  wages.     It  wants  justice. 

Faith  claims  nothing  as  a  right.  It  asks  not  for 
wages.  It  seeks  not  justice.  Faith  knows  that  to 
ask  for  justice  is  to  ask  for  rejection,  to  claim 
wages  earned  is  to  claim  condemnation. 

In  the  days  of  Napoleon  the  Great,  a  timid  little 
girl  once  pressed  her  way  through  the  courtiers 
and  stood  before  him.  Looking  down  into  her 
pleading  face,  the  emperor  said,  "Well,  child, 
what  is  it?"  Tremblingly  she  told  him  that  she 
came  to  beg  for  the  life  of  her  father,  who  was 
under  sentence  of  death.  Growing  stern,  the  em- 
peror replied,  "Child,  your  petition  is  useless: 
twice  before  your  father  deserved  death,  and  was 
pardoned,  and  now  justice!  justice  to  my  country, 
and  justice  to  myself,  demands  that  he  suffer  the 
penalty."  "Sir,"  said  the  little  pleader,  "I  come 
not  to  ask  for  justice^  but  to  beg  for  mercy. ' ' 

And  so  the  Publican  came.  And  so  must  every 
penitent  come.  And  so  does  true  faith  ever  come. 
It  sees  the  proffered  mercy.  It  realizes  that  it  is 
unmerited  and  free.  It  reaches  out  towards  that 
mercy.  It  grasps  it,  it  clings  to  it,  it  casts  itself 
upon  it,  it  rests  there.  This  is  faith.  The  Publi- 
can is  converted. 


THK    PUBLICAN.  69 

Sinner,  there  is  mercy  for  you.  You  cannot 
earn  it.  It  has  been  earned,  by  the  obedient  life, 
the  atoniug  death  and  triumphant  resurrection  and 
ascension  of  our  Lord  and  Saviour,  Jesus  Christ. 
You  cannot  buy  it.  It  has  been  bought  and  paid 
for  by  Him.  You  cannot  prepare  yourself  for  it. 
You  need  only  let  Him  prepare  you,  by  coming  to 
that  living  Word,  which  will  convict  you  of  your 
guilt,  your  need,  your  own  helplessness,  and  the 
abounding  help  of  free  mercy.  It  will  enable  you 
to  lay  hold  of  and  rejoice  in  that  mercy. 

The  Publican  went  down  to  his  house  justified. 
He  was  justified,  not  because  he  had  made  himself 
worthy,  but  because  he  believed,  "y^  man  is  not 
justified  by  the  works  of  the  law^  hit  by  the  faith 
of  fesus  Christ  .  .  .  for  by  the  works  of  the  law 
shall  no  flesh  be  justified.  Being  justified  by  faith., 
he  had  peace  with  God  through  our  Lord  fesus 
Christ.'' 

It  was  a  blessed  church-going  to  him.  Every 
church-going  ought  to  be  attended  with  the  same 
blessed  results.  Oh,  for  a  congregation  of  wor- 
shippers with  hearts  bowed  down  with  a  seuse  of 
sin,  emptied  of  self-sufficiency,  yearning  for  richer 
measures  of  Grace,  and  believing  that  Jesus  does 
furnish  that  satisfying  Grace. 


7©  NEW  TESTAMENT  CONVERSIONS. 

One  of  our  old  German  ministers  was  once  con- 
gratulated by  a  Presbyterian  pastor  on  his  large 
audiences  and  general  popularity.  "Oh,  no,"  said 
the  old  Lutheran,  "I  have  nothing  yet  to  be  con- 
gratulated on.  My  people  don't  realize  yet  that 
without  Christ  they  are  all  poor,  lost  and  ruined 
sinners."  May  our  church-going  be  always  so 
blessed  to  us,  that  each  attendance  may  deepen 
our  penitence  and  increase  our  faith. 

All  that  I  was,  my  sin,  my  ^ilt, 

My  deatli,  was  all  my  own. 
All  that  I  am  I  owe  to  Thee, 

My  gracious  God,  alone. 

The  evil  of  my  former  state 

Was  mine,  and  only  mine. 
The  good  in  which  I  now  rejoice 

Is  Thine  and  only  Thine. 

Thy  Grace  first  made  me  feel  my  sin, 
It  taught  me  to  believe, 
•  Then,  in  believing,  peace  I  found, 

And  now  I  live,  I  live  ! 


SERMON  V. 


THE  CONVERSION  OF  ZACCHEUS. 

Luke  xix.  2-9. 


Luke  xix.  2-g.  And  Jesus  entered  and  passed  througti  Jericho. 
And,  behold,  there  was  a  man  named  Zaccheus,  which  was  the 
chief  among  the  publicans,  and  he  was  rich.  And  he  sought  to 
see  Jesus  who  He  was  ;  and  could  not  for  the  press,  because  he 
was  little  of  stature.  And  he  ran  before  and  climbed  into  a 
sycamore  tree  to  see  Him  ;  for  He  was  to  pass  that  way.  And 
when  Jesus  came  to  the  place,  He  looked  up,  and  saw  him,  and 
said  unto  him,  Zaccheus,  make  haste  and  come  down  ;  for  to- 
day I  must  abide  at  thy  house.  And  he  made  haste,  and  came 
down,  and  received  Him  joyfully.  And  when  they  saw  it,  they 
all  murmured,  saying,  That  He  was  gone  to  be  guest  with  a 
man  that  is  a  sinner.  And  Zaccheus  stood,  and  said  unto  the 
Lord :  Behold,  Lord,  the  half  of  my  goods  I  give  to  the  poor ; 
and  if  I  have  taken  anything  from  any  man  by  false  accusation, 
I  restore  him  four-fold.  And  Jesus  said  unto  him  :  This  day  is 
salvation  come  to  this  house,  forasmuch  as  he  also  is  a  son  of 
Abraham. 


SERMON  V. 

Zaccheus  was  a  publican.  The  publicans  were 
the  tax  collectors  among  the  Jews  of  our  Saviour's 
day.  The  tax,  or  tribute  as  they  called  it,  was 
levied  by  Rome.  Though  conquered  by  Rome 
and  under  its  rule,  the  Jews  fretted  under  the  yoke 
and  yielded  only  a  sullen  and  unwilling  obedience 
to  its  authority.  They  hated  to  pay  tribute  to 
Csesar,  and  consequently  hated  those  who  collected 
the  tax.  And  so  every  one  hated  the  sight  of  a 
publican. 

The  Roman  government  took  contracts  for  the 
taxes.  For  example,  some  rich  man  would  become 
responsible  for  the  taxes  of  a  certain  district  or 
county.  He  would  sub-let  that  district  to  a  num- 
ber of  others,  each  one  of  whom  became  responsi- 
ble to  him  for  a  certain  section,  as  e.  g.  a  town- 
ship. The  sub-contractor  again  would  generally 
hire  men  to  go  from  house  to  house  and  gather  in 
the  money.  Thus  it  came  about  that  the  tax 
money  had  to  pass  through  three  or  four  hands 
before  it  reached  the  treasury  of  Rome.  Each  one 
of  these  hands  wanted  a  profit.     In  order  to  make 

(73) 


74  NEW  TESTAMENT  CONVERSIONS. 

a  profit  more  tax  was  collected  than  was  levied  by 
Rome.  And  so  it  became  almost  a  part  of  the  sys- 
tem to  extort  unlawful  money.  The  people  knew 
this,  and  therefore  hated  these  unjust  and  oppres- 
sive publicans  still  more.  To  be  a  publican  was, 
in  the  eyes  of  the  people,  to  be  an  extortioner. 
Those  who  had  the  contracts  for  larger  districts, 
were  chief  among  the  publicans.  Such  was 
Zaccheus. 

The  city  of  Jericho  was  probably  the  most  im- 
portant commercial  city  in  Palestine.  Lying  just 
opposite  the  fords  of  the  river  Jordan,  it  was  on  the 
great  highway  that  led  from  Arabia  and  Assyria 
across  into  Egypt.  This  City  of  Palm  Trees  was 
naturally  a  headquarters  for  those  who  were  chief 
of  the  publicans.     Zaccheus  lived  there. 

Our  text  gives  us  an  account  of  the  remarkable 
conversion  of  this  chief  publican.  It  is  this  con- 
version that  we  now  desire  to  consider. 

We  inquire,  first :  What  led  to  that  conversion  ? 
There  are  some  who  tell  us  that  it  was  the  curiosity 
of  Zaccheus  that  led  to  his  conversion.  They  say 
that  he  had  heard  about  Jesus,  and  therefore  had 
that  curious  desire  to  see  Him  that  we  all  have  to 
look  upon  some  eminent  or  famous  person.  And 
this  idle  curiosity  alone,  they  tell  us,  made  him  so 
eager  to  see  Jesus. 


THE  CONVERSION  OF  ZACCHEUS.  75 

We  confess  that  this  strikes  us  as  a  rather  super- 
ficial view  of  the  matter.  To  us  the  eagerness  of 
Zaccheus  seems  too  great  to  be  accounted  for  on 
the  mere  ground  of  curiosity.  There  seems  to  be 
a  deep  and  intense  earnestness  underlying  his 
rather  strange  actions.  The  sequel  of  the  story 
also  seems  to  squarely  contradict  the  idea  of  a  mere 
curiosity. 

We  believe  there  were  deeper  motives  there. 
We  believe  that  prevenient  Grace  was  at  work 
there. 

Jesus  was  closing  up  His  public  ministry.  He 
was  on  His  last  journey  to  Jerusalem.  For  three 
years  He  had  been  going  up  and  down  in  the  land 
with  blessings  in  His  heart,  with  blessings  on  His 
lips,  and  with  blessings  in  His  hands.  He  had 
been  the  great  Helper  and  Healer  of  the  bodies  and 
souls  of  men. 

His  fame  had  gone  abroad  into  all  the  land. 
Everywhere  people  were  talking  about  Him.  He 
had  been  in  the  region  of  Jericho  at  different  times 
before.  Zaccheus  must  have  heard  about  Him. 
The  tax-collectors  under  him,  who  were  going 
from  house  to  house,  among  the  people,  would 
naturally  come  in  contact  with  some  who  had  seen 
and  heard  Jesus,  who  had  been  helped,  or  had  seen 


-J^  NEW  TESTAMENT  CONVERSIONS. 

others  helped.  Quite  likely  some  of  these  under- 
publicaus  had  themselves  seen  some  of  those 
wonderful  deeds  of  love,  and  heard  some  of  those 
wonderful  words  of  life.  All  this  they  would  re- 
port to  Zaccheus  when  they  came  to  pay  over  their 
money.  They  would  also  be  very  likely  to  tell 
him  that  this  wonderful  Jesus  did  not  think  Him- 
self above  speaking  to,  mingling  with,  and  helping 
men  of  their  own  despised  class — that  He  had 
even  called  one,  who  had  been  a  chief  among  the 
publicans,  from  the  receipt  of  custom,  to  become 
one  of  His  twelve  disciples. 

Zaccheus  heard  these  stories  about  Jesus.  This 
was  Gospel  to  him,  for  what  is  the  Gospel  but  the 
glad  tidings,  the  good  news  of  the  Son  of  God  ? 
Zaccheus  had  this  Gospel  only  in  disconnected 
stories  and  rumors.  It  was  only  a  fragmentary 
Gospel,  but  it  was  all  the  Gospel  he  had.  And 
even  this  Gospel  was  to  him  the  power  of  God  tuito 
salvation. 

He  had  accepted  that  Gospel.  He  had  believed 
those  stories.  They  had  stirred  in  him  lonofinofs 
after  a  better  life.  They  had  worked  an  earnest 
desire  to  come  near  to  this  Jesus  and  receive  a 
blessing  from  Him.  His  heart  was  going  out  to- 
wards this  unknown  Jesus. 


THE    CONVERSION    OF   ZACCHEUS.  77 

Here  let  us  notice,  in  passing,  that  Zaccheus 
might  have  resisted,  and  shaken  off  these  impres- 
sions; he  might  have  plunged  more  deeply  into 
business  and  speculation ;  he  might  have  qiiencJied 
the  Spirit^  who  was  working  through  the  Word — 
but  he  did  not.  He  allowed  that  fragmentary 
Word  to  do  its  blessed  preparatory  work.  This 
led  to  his  conversion. 

We  notice,  secondly^  the  obstacles  in  the  way  of 
his  conversion. 

First:  He  was  rich.  Riches  have  ever  proved  a 
formidable  obstacle  to  the  conversion  of  sinners. 
God  demands  the  whole  heart  or  none.  He  will 
not  have  a  divided  heart.  We  cannot  serve  God 
and  Mammon.  Riches  take  a  strong  hold  on  the 
human  heart.  Covetousness  grows  as  wealth  in- 
creases. ' '  Take  heed^  and  beware  of  covetousness., ' ' 
' '  which  is  idolatry. ' ' 

In  the  chapter  preceding  our  text  we  have  a 
sad  example  of  the  adverse  power  of  riches.  In 
view  of  that  example  Jesus  said:  Hozv  hardly  shall 
they  that  have  riches  enter  into  the  kingdom  of  God! 
It  is  easier  for  a  camel  to  go  through  a  needle'' s  eye., 
than  for  a  rich  man  to  enter  into  the  kingdoin  of 
God.  Further  on  He  explains  that  while  with  man 
it  is  impossible.,  with  God  it  is  possible.     It  seems 


yS  NEW   TESTAMENT   CONVERSIONS. 

to  require  a  special  measure  of  Grace  from  God,  and 
special  earnestness  on  the  part  of  himself,  for  a  rich 
man  to  become  and  remain  a  child  of  God.  Zaccheus 
was  rich.     Here  was  an  obstacle  to  his  conversion. 

Again,  there  was  a  bodily  impediment,  ke  was 
small  of  stature — so  small  that  he  could  not  see 
Jesus  for  the  crowd  that  surrounded  Him.  This 
physical  disability  might  have  kept  him  away  from 
Jesus.  He  might  have  said,  "  I  want  to  see  Jesus, 
I  had  fully  intended  to  see  Him;  but  my  smallness 
of  stature  prevents  me,  and  so  I'll  give  it  up." 

A  further  difficulty  in  the  way  was  the  ridicule 
to  which  he  would  expose  himself  by  taking  a 
position  where  he  could  see.  As  a  publican  he 
was  despised  by  the  people.  He  knew  that  they 
would  be  only  too  ready  to  ridicule  him  if  he 
should  climb  into  that  tree.  Again,  he  had  a  cer- 
tain dignity  to  maintain.  He  was  a  rich  man,  a 
chief  ^.mong  the  publicans,  an  officer  of  the  Roman 
government;  and  should  he  so  compromise  his 
dignity  as  to  make  a  public  spectacle  of  himself? 
Should  he  run  ahead  of  the  crowd,  and  in  full  view 
of  them,  climb  into  a  tree  like  a  boy?  Should  he 
become  a  laughing-stock  to  his  enemies  and  a 
mortification  to  his  friends?  Here  were  obstacles 
to  overcome. 


THE   CONVERSION    OF    ZACCHEUS.  79 

But  Zaccheus  was  too  miicli  in  earnest  to  be  de- 
terred. Oh,  how  many  have  been  kept  away  from 
Christ  by  just  such  impediments  as  were  in  his  way. 
How  many  have  had  their  first  serious  thoughts, 
their  first  good  impulses,  checked  by  the  deceitfiilness 
of  riches.  How  many  have  been  kept  out  of  the 
kingdom  of  Grace  here,  and  the  kingdom  of  Glory 
there,  by  the  glitter  of  gold.  Not  so  Zaccheus, 
he  was  already  beginning  to  esteem  the  reproach  of 
Christ  greater  riches  than  the  treasures  of  Rome. 

And  how  many  again  have  been  kept  out  by 
bodily  impediments.  Oh,  how  many  are  kept 
away,  or  rather  keep  themselves  away,  from  the 
house  of  God  and  the  means  of  Grace,  by  real  or 
imaginary  bodily  ailments.  Alas,  these  nervous 
spells!  These  Simday  headaches!  This  dread  of 
exposure  on  the  Lord's  day!  We  have  known 
many  who  could  work  hard  all  week,  but  were  too 
weak  or  nervous  or  sick  to  go  to  church  on  Sunday; 
because  of  slight  or  only  supposed  bodily  ills,  the 
poor  soul  was  allowed  to  starve  and  die. 

On  the  other  hand,  we  have  known  persons  who 
really  had  serious  bodily  ailments,  who  yet  had 
themselves  led  or  carried  into  the  house  of  God. 
We  have  seen  persons  sit  under  the  preaching  of 
the  Word,  while  their  bodies  were  shaking  with 


8o  NEW  TESTAMENT  CONVERSIONS. 

pain.  These  were  in  earnest.  They  were  hungry. 
They  wanted  to  meet  Jesus  in  His  Church  and  in 
His  ordinances.  Such  was  Zaccheus.  Too  little 
to  see  Jesus  like  other  people,  he  quickly  devised  a 
way  and  found  a  place  where  he  could. 

How  many  also  have  been  kept  from  yielding  to 
the  strivings  of  the  Spirit  in  the  preaching  of  the 
Word,  because  they  were  afraid  of  ridicule.  Alas 
for  the  number  that  have  been  laughed  and  sneered 
out  of  heaveu.  Zaccheus  did  not  stop  for  this,  but 
boldly  braved  the  bravado  of  the  crowd.  Thus  he 
overcame  every  obstacle  that  stood  in  the  way  of 
his  conversion. 

In  the  third  place  we  notice  the  conversion  itself. 

We  have  already  noticed  the  preparatory  work 
that  had  been  done  by  the  fragmentary  Gospel  he 
had  doubtless  received.  Through  this  the  prepar- 
atory Grace  had  reached  him,  and  drawn  him  to- 
wards Jesus,  This  had  brought  him  to  where  the 
Word  and  look  of  Jesus  could  reach  him.  And 
Jesus  did  reach  him.  He  looked  up  and  saw  him. 
As  an  old  writer  says,  "He  saw  in  Zaccheus  a  ripe 
fig,  ready  to  drop  into  His  lap."  It  was  there,  in 
that  tree,  w4iere  the  turning  point  was  made. 
There  the  decisive  step  was  taken,  and  Zaccheus 
was  converted. 


THE   CONVERSION   OF   ZACCHEUS.  Si 

When  Jesus  spoke  to  liim,  called  him  by  name, 
and  bade  him  to  come  down,  it  was  the  same  voice, 
the  same  living  Word  that  had  spoken  power  into 
a  withered  hand,  and  life  into  dead  bodies. 

Zaccheus  heard  that  Word.  He  yielded  fully  to 
its  power,  and  in  yielding  he  turned  from  darkness 
to  light^  and  from  the  power  of  Satan  to  God. 
When  Zaccheus  made  haste  and  caine  down^  he 
was  a  converted  man. 

How  far  the  beginnings,  that  led  to  that  final 
step,  lay  back,  we  do  not  know.  Doubtless  the 
beginnings  were  small.  A  passing  thought  about 
Jesus,  a  timid  look  into  his  own  heart,  a  hasty 
glance  over  his  past  life,  a  slight  dissatisfaction 
with  self,  an  unexpressed  longing  after  some- 
thing better — such  may  have  been  the  beginnings. 
It  was  the  seed-corn,  rooting  and  sprouting.  With 
clearer  ideas  of  sin  and  the  Saviour,  with  deeper 
sorrow  for  sin  and  more  earnest  longing  to  come 
to  this .  Saviour,  the  change  was  becoming  more 
decisive.  And  now  the  crisis  had  come,  and  he 
surrejidered  fully  to  Christ.  The  great  rending 
choice  was  made. 

Let  no  one  despise  the  day  of  small  things. 
Where  small  measures  and  opportunities  of  Grace 


83  NEW  TESTAMENT  CONVERSIONS. 

are  improved,  greater  ones  are  given.  Let  it  also 
be  still  borne  in  mind,  that  even  now  Zaccheus 
might  have  refused  to  come  down  and  receive 
Jesus  into  his  house.  He  might  have  resisted 
even  this  eflfectual  call.  Man  always  has  the  sad 
and  awful  prerogative  and  power  to  beat  back  the 
hand  that  is  stretched  out  to  save  him. 

In  conclusion,  we  notice  the  evidences  that 
Zaccheus  was  truly  converted.  A  true  conversion 
always  proves  itself.  So  did  this  one.  Zaccheus 
made  a  public  confession.  This  must  follow  every 
conversion.  "  With  the  heart  man  believeth  unto 
righteoiLsness^  but  with  the  month  confession  is  made 
unto  salvation^  Zaccheus  confessed  his  former 
sins.  He  did  this  in  the  presence  of  the  people, 
and  before  Christ. 

He  said,  "7/"/  have  taken  a7iy thing  from  any 
man  by  false  accusation. ' '  This  is  at  least  an  ac- 
knowledgment that  he  had  not  been  careful  to  be 
honest,  that  he  had  been  capable  of  taking  by  false 
accusation.  Thus  he  confessed  his  sinfulness  and 
his  sin. 

He  confessed  Christ  by  coming  down  from  the 
tree  at  His  call,  going  with  Him  in  presence  of  the 
murmuring  crowd,  and  making  this  public  declar- 
ation to  Him  as  his  Lord. 


THE  CONVERSION   OF   ZACCHEUS.  83 

He  further  proved  his  conversion  by  his  determi- 
nation to  make  restitution  for  any  wrong  done. 
A  truly  converted  man  cannot  keep  what  he  knows 
is  ill-gotten  gain.  His  enlightened  and  now  ten- 
der conscience,  compels  him  to  make  restoration  as 
far  as  possible. 

In  purposing  to  make  restitution,  Zaccheus,  at 
the  same  time,  professed  that  henceforth  he  would 
be  strictly  honest  in  all  his  dealings.  There  can 
be  honesty  where  there  is  no  religion,  but  there 
certainly  can  be  no  true  religion  where  there  is  no 
honesty.  A  true  Christian  cannot  misrepresent, 
adulterate,  give  short  weight,  or  measure  or  take 
advantage  of  ignorance,  in  his  business  transactions. 
A  man  may  pray  ever  so  fervently  in  prayer- meet- 
ing, or  talk  ever  so  touchingly  in  experience  meet- 
ing, but  if  he  is  not  strictly  truthful  and  honest  in 
all  his  dealings,  we  take  no  stock  in  his  religion. 
A  true  conversion  turns  a  dishonest  into  an  honest 

man. 

Attain,  Zaccheus  became  liberal.  Half  of  his 
goods  he  determined  to  give  to  the  poor.  A  true 
conversion  turns  the  stingy  into  the  liberal  man. 
It  opens  the  pocket-book  as  well  as  the  heart. 
There  is  no  such  thing  as  a  Christian  miser.  If 
one  is  a  miser  he  is  not  a  Christian,  he  needs  to  be 
converted. 


84  NEW  TESTAMENT  CONVERSIONS. 

Finally,  salvation  came  to  the  house  of  Zacclieus. 
not  tliat  all  the  members  of  the  household  were  at 
once  converted,  but  the  head  of  the  family  had 
become  a  disciple  of  Christ.  This  brought  a 
Christian  atmosphere  into  the  home.  The  Word 
of  God  and  prayer  took  their  proper  place  in  the 
family.  The  things  of  God  were  talked  about  and 
taught  in  the  household.  .  A  true  conversion  shows 
piety  at  home.  We  once  heard  a  boy  say  with 
considerable  bitterness:  "Yes,  my  father  can  pray 
at  prayer-meeting,  but  I  never  heard  him  pray  at 
home."  He  professed  to  be  a  Christian,  but  sal- 
vation had  not  been  brought  by  him  into  the 
house. 

Behold  then,  in  Zaccheus,  the  proofs  of  conver- 
sion. Do  you  profess  to  be  in  a  converted  state? 
Can  you  show  the  evidence  that  he  showed? 

Are  you  still  unconverted;  in  the  gall  of  bitter- 
ness and  the  bond  of  iniquity?  Would  you  be 
converted?  What  must  you  do?  Simply  z^i-^  the 
means.  Use  them  diligently  and  prayerfully,  and 
they  will  bring  renewing  Grace  into  your  soul. 


SERMON  VI 


THE  FALL  AND  RECONVERSION  OF  PETER. 

Matt.  xxvi.  69-75. 


I\ratt.  xxvi.  6g-7^.  Now  Peter  sat  without  in  the  palace  :  and 
a  damsel  came  unto  him,  saying  :  Thou  also  wast  with  Jesus  of 
Galilee. 

But  he  denied  before  them  all,  saying  :  I  know  not  what  thou 
saj-est. 

And  when  he  was  gone  out  into  the  porch,  another  maid  saw 
him,  and  said  unto  them  that  were  there  :  This  fellow  was  also 
with  Jesus  of  Nazareth. 

And  again  he  denied  with  an  oath,  I  do  not  know  the  man. 

And  after  a  while  came  unto  him  they  that  stood  by,  and 
said  to  Peter  :  Surely  thou  also  art  one  of  them  ;  for  thy  speech 
bewrayeth  thee. 

Then  began  he  to  curse  and  to  swear,  saying :  I  know  not  the 
man.     And  immediately  the  cock  crew. 

And  Peter  remembered  the  word  of  Jesus.  Before  the  cock 
crow  thou  shalt  deny  me  thrice.  And  he  went  out  and  wept 
bitterly. 


SERMON  VI. 

Among  all  the  interesting  characters  of  the  New 
Testament,  there  are  none  more  interesting  than 
the  Apostle  Peter.  There  is  something  about  him 
that  invites  study.  There  is  much  in  him  that  is 
fascinating.  We  often  feel  that  we  cannot  help 
but  love  him.  On  the  other  hand,  he  often  vexes 
us.  His  character  requires  careful  and  unpre- 
judiced examination.  If  we  fail  to  understand  the 
whole  man,  if  we  stop  short  of  considering  his 
whole  career,  we  will  be  quite  likely  to  form  a  one- 
sided judgment.  There  is  danger  of  making  him 
either  a  hero  or  a  coward.  Before  we  can  under- 
stand his  fall  and  recovery,  we  must  understand 
the  man. 

Peter,  with  his  }ounger  brother  Andrew,  was 
among  the  earliest  of  Christ's  followers.  He  had 
been  a  disciple  of  John  the  Baptist,  by  whom  he 
had  been  directed  to  Jesus.  Jesus  at  once  took 
particular  notice  of  him  and  paid  special  attention 
to  him.  His  name  had  been  Simon ;  Jesus  changed 
it  to  Cephas,  which  is  the  Syriac  word  for  Petros, 
which  is  the  Greek  word  for  rock.      ^' And  when 

(87) 


88  NEW  TESTAMENT  CONVERSIONS. 

Jesus  beheld  hmt^  he  said^  Thou  art  Simon  the  son 
ofjona :  thou  shalt  be  called  Cephas^  which  is  by  in- 
terpretation^ A.  stoned    John  i.  42. 

From  among  the  large  number  of  disciples,  Jesus 
selected  twelve  to  be  apostles.  It  seems  that  Peter 
was  the  first  chosen;  his  name  is  always  mentioned 
first  in  the  lists  of  the  apostles.  From  the  begin- 
ning he  was  a  recognized  leader.  By  common 
consent  he  acted  as  the  spokesman  for  the  rest. 
He  was  one  of  the  favored  three  who  stood  closest 
to  Jesus;  they  were  permitted  to  witness  miracles 
that  none  others  saw;  they  were  with  Jesus  on  the 
mount  of  transfiguration;  they  with  Andrew  heard 
that  long,  deep  and  thrilling  prophecy  concerning 
the  destruction  of  Jerusalem  and  the  end  of  the 
world.  Jesus  certainly  recognized  Peter  as  a  true 
disciple;  he  was  neither  a  formalist  nor  a  hypocrite. 
Not  only  did  he  witness  good  lip-confessions,  but 
Jesus  said  to  him.  Matt.  xvi.  17,  ''''Blessed  art  tho2i^ 
Simon  Bar-jona:  for  flesh  and  blood  hath  not  revealed 
it  unto  thee^  but  my  Father  which  is  in  heaven.'''' 

We  notice  some  elements  of  strength  in  his 
character.  The  first  is  the  conviction  of  his  own  sin. 
On  one  occasion  when  he  was  suddenly  confronted 
with  the  power  and  divinity  of  his  Lord,  he  vehe- 
mently confessed,  '"'' I  am  a  sinful  man^  O  Lord^ 


FALL   AND   RECONVERSION   OF   PETER.  89 

This  we  consider  an  element  of  strength.  In  the 
kingdom  of  Grace  there  is  no  strength  without  a 
sense  of  sin  and  unworthiness.  He  who  most 
clearly  and  most  fully  realizes  this  has  in  him  the 
foundation  of  the  greatest  strength.  Paul,  who 
could  say  '"''  o/whom — i.  e.  of  sinners — I  am  chief'' 
could  also  say,  ' '  when  I  am  weak^  theti  am  I 
strong. ' ' 

Again  we  recognize  his  strength  in  his  clear  and 
unreserved  confession  of  Christ,  or  his  faith.  When 
'''■  ynany  of  His  disciples  went  back  and  walked  no 
more  with  Him^  then  said  Jesus  unto  the  twelve^  Will 
ye  also  go  away  ?  Then  Simon  Peter  answered  and 
said^  Lord^  to  whom  shall  we  go  ?  Thou  hast  the 
words  of  eternal  life.''''  John  vi.  66-68.  And  so 
again  when  Jesus  asked,  Matt.  xvi.  15,  16:  ^^  But 
zvhom  say  ye  that  I  am  ?  And  Simon  Peter  an- 
swered and  said^  Thou  art  the  Christy  the  Son  of  the 
livifig  God.'''' 

We  see  a  further  element  of  strength  in  his  deep 
love  for  his  Lord.  When  he  recognized  Jesus 
walking  on  the  water,  he  at  once  desired  to  get 
near  to  Him.  "Z^r^Z,  if  it  be  thou^  bid  me  come  to 
thee.''''  When  Jesus  announced  that  one  of  them 
should  betray  Him,  Peter  became  very  solicitious 
for  his  Master.     When  told  that  all  should  be  of 


90  NEW  TESTAMENT  CONVERSIONS. 

fended  because  of  Him  ^  Peter  violently  protested, 
that  for  his  jDart,  he  was  ready  to  go  to  prison  and 
to  death  with  Jesus.  Neither  was  there  any  in- 
tended hypocrisy  in  this.  Peter  spoke  as  he  felt; 
he  did  love  his  Saviour;  he  did  on  the  first  approach 
of  violence  draw  his  sword  and  begin  to  fight  for 
Him.  There  is  no  doubt  but  that  even  some  of  his 
blunders  were  in  part  the  expressions  of  unreason- 
ing and  impulsive  love.  So,  on  the  mount,  when 
he  wist  not  what  he  said^  and  proposed  to  build  three 
taber7iacles  because  it  was  good  to  be  there^  there 
was  in  it  a  desire  to  remain  near  Jesus.  So  again 
when  he  rebuked  his  Lord  for  intimating  His  ap- 
proaching sufferings  and  death,  there  was  doubt- 
less love  in  his  hasty  words;  and  so  also  when  he 
protested  against  Jesus  washing  his  feet. 

But  there  was  also  some  self-love  present.  Peter 
had  his  weak  side;  it  showed  itself  again  and 
again.     It  culminated  in  his  sad  deep  fall. 

Peter  was  too  much  guided  by  impulse;  He  was 
too  much  a  man  of  feeling;  he  acted  too  much  on 
the  spur  of  the  moment;  he  was  too  hasty;  he  was 
inconsiderate;  he  spoke  without  thinking;  he  was 
swift  to  speak  and  slow  to  hear;  he  was  willing  to 
build  towers  without  counting  the  cost;  ready  to 
go  on  a  warfare  on  his  own  charges.     We  see  this 


FALL  AND   RECONVERSION   OF  PETER.  91 

in  nearly  all  his  actions;  we  hear  it  in  most  of  his 
words.  When  he  started  so  boldly  to  go  to  Jesus 
on  the  water,  he  soon  began  to  look  on  the  winds 
and  waves,  and  began  to  sink.  Instead  of  asking 
Jesus  for  instruction  concerning  His  sufferings 
and  death,  he  presumed  to  rebuke  the  Lord,  and 
thus  drew  upon  himself  the  severest  rebuke  that 
Jesus  ever  gave  to  a  disciple.  Before  he  under- 
stands or  tries  to  understand  the  foot-washing,  he 
breaks  out,  ''''Thou,  shall  never  wash  viy  feet.''^ 
Before  Jesus  gets  through  explaining  it,  he  flies  to 
the  other  extreme  and  gives  the  Lord  directions: 
^'' Lord^  not  my  feet  only^  bnt  my  hands  and  my 
heady  He  hasn't  the  patience  to  sit  still  in  the 
darkness  and  watch,  as  directed;  but  after  each 
plaintive  plea  from  Jesus,  he  goes  to  sleep.  But 
without  being  bidden,  he  draws  his  sword  and 
blindly  smites  and  threatens  to  make  more  mis- 
chief for  the  Master.  Self-love  also  sounds  through 
his  rebuke  of  the  Lord  and  his  transfiguration 
speech ;  he  wanted  an  earthly  kingdom  and  a  place 
in  it.  For  this  he  was  willing  to  smite  with  the 
sword;  for  this  he  was  asking  when  he  said  "j5'<f- 
hold.^  we  have  forsaken  all  and  followed  thee:  ivhat 
shall  we  have  therefor?'*'' 

We  naturally  inquire  into  the  underlying  causes 
of  these  weaknesses  and  contradictions  in  Peter. 


93  NEW  TESTAMENT  CONVERSIONS. 

From  what  we  have  already  noticed  and  from 
other  instances  and  glimpses  of  Peter,  we  believe 
we  can  safely  infer  that  he  did  not  understand  the 
mission  of  Jesus.  Together  with  nearly  all  the 
people  of  his  day,  the  enemies  as  well  as  the  friends 
of  Jesus,  Peter  believed  that  it  was  the  mission  of 
the  Messiah  to  deliver  Israel  from  the  Roman  rule 
and  re-establish  the  throne  of  David  and  Solomon. 
In  this  sense  Peter  also  ''''trusted  that  it  was  He 
which  should  redeem  IsraeV  To  redeevt  Israel 
was  to  break  the  power  of  Rome  and  make  of 
Israel  a  great  and  glorious  nation.  Peter  had  laid 
hold  of  this  idea  with  all  the  ardor  and  enthusiasm 
of  his  impulsive  nature.  What  a  kingdom  that 
would  be  with  "  the  Soft  of  the  living  God''''  on  the 
throne !  And  what  privileges  and  prerogatives  for 
those  who  should  be  great  or  favored  by  being  near 
the  King!  This  bethought  was  coming  on  the 
mount.  For  this  he  was  willing  to  draw  the 
sword,  to  brave  the  prison  and  the  death. 

But  when  Jesus  so  earnestly  set  His  face  toward 
Jerusalem,  when  on  that  momentous  journey  He  so 
solemnly  repeated  the  predictions  of  His  suffering 
and  death,  Peter  was  shocked,  he  was  bewildered, 
he  was  offended,  he  refused  to  give  up  his  favorite 
idea — he  didn't  want  a  suffering  Saviour.     He  had 


FALIv  AND  RECONVERSION  OF  PETER.  93 

made  up  his  mind  that  it  should  not  be.  His  mind 
thus  pre-occupied  and  pre-determined,  he  was  not 
in  a  teachable  frame.  And  though  Jesus  spoke 
plainly  and  repeated  His  instructions,  Peter  under- 
stood not;  he  didn't  want  it  so,  and  therefore  per- 
suaded himself  that  it  would  not  be  so — that  there 
must  be  some  hidden  meaning  in  the  words  of 
Christ.  And  so  Peter  remained  in  ignorance;  he 
did  not  understand  that  Jesus  must  first  be  our 
Priest  to  offer  up  Himself  as  the  Lamb  of  God  for 
the  sins  of  the  world;  he  did  not  understand  that 
His  kingdom  must  be  built  on  His  Priesthood. 
He  did  not  understand  the  principal  lesson  which 
Jesus  as  a  prophet  had  come  to  teach,  viz.,  the 
nature  of  His  Priesthood  and  its  necessity  in  the 
sinfulness  of  man. 

Oh,  how  hard  it  is  to  unlearn  an  error  when  that 
error  is  congenial  and  well-pleasing  to  the  reason 
and  the  desires  of  the  natural  heart !  How  hard  to 
accept  a  truth  when  that  truth  is  above  reason, 
and  makes  the  proud  reason  bow  in  child-like  sub- 
mission, and  when  it  is  contrary  to  the  desires  of 
the  natural  heart  and  condemns  that  heart  and  its 
desires  as  sinful  and  guilty  of  wrath  ! 

We  might  go  a  step  further  in  Peter's  case,  and 
afiirni  that  Peter  did   not  understand  the  vicarious 


94  NEW  TESTAMENT  CONVERSIONS. 

work  of  Jesus,  because  he  didn't  understand  him- 
self. He  didn't  have  a  full  and  clear  conception 
of  the  sinful  and  utterly  ruined  state  of  his  own 
heart.  He  was  conscious  of  a  certain  enthusiastic 
devotion  to  Jesus.  He  further  believed  that  his 
salvation  in  some  way  depended  on  fellowship  with 
this  Jesus.  But  had  he  fully  known  the  depravity, 
the  deceitfulness,  the  lurking  roots  of  treachery 
that  lay  hidden  there,  he  would  have  had  a  deeper 
penitence  and  a  more  clinging  faith.  He  would 
have  felt  that  he  needed  first  of  all  a  sacrifice  for 
sin,  that  there  could  be  no  kingdom  for  him  with- 
out this.  Peter  lacked  in  intelligent  conviction. 
His  feeling  was  not  the  outgrowth  of  knowledge. 
Instead  of  being  guided  by  principle,  based  on  un- 
derstanding of  self,  and  of  his  Master,  he  was 
guided  too  much  by  impulse. 

How  important  to  be  carefully  instructed  in  the 
truth!  How  necessary  to  have  clear  ideas  of  God's 
way  of  salvation!  How  indispensable  for  safety 
and  strength,  especially  in  our  dangerous  age,  to 
have  piety  built  on  principle,  principle  on  convic- 
tion, and  conviction  on  clear  conceptions  of  God's 
truth.  The  most  glowing  spurts  of  enthusiasm, 
the  most  fervid  feelings  of  love,  cannot  dispense 
with  the  necessity  of  instruction.  We  still  need 
the  catechism. 


FALL  AND  RECONVERSION  OF  PETER.  95 

To  return  to  Peter.     We  are  now  ready  to  under- 
stand his  shameful  falL 

He  had  followed  after  Jesus  to  the  High  Priest's 
palace.     John  had  procured  him  admittance  into 
the   open  court  in  the  centre  of  the  palace.     The 
room   in   which    the    trial  of  Jesus  was  going  om 
opened  on  this  court-yard  by  a  hallway  or  porch. 
Those  that  were  without  could  see  and  hear  all  that 
was  going  on  within.     Peter  was  first  accosted  by 
a  portress  who  kept  the  gate.     To  her  he  made  a 
simple   denial.      The   second   time   he   was   more 
closely  questioned  by  another  servant-maid  of  the 
High  Priest,  who  charged  him    more  directly  and 
more   publicly  with   being    a   follower   of   Jesus. 
^^A7id  again  he  denied  zvith  an  oath^  I  do  not  know 
the  many     About  an  hour  afterwards  he  was  still 
more  forcibly  accused  by  a  kinsman  of  Malchus. 
Others  that  stood  by  joined  in  the  charge,  and  told 
him  that  his  very  speech  or  dialect  betrayed  him. 
And  now  comes  the  lowest  step.      "  Then  began  he 
to  curse  and  to  szuear,  saying,  I  knoiu  not  the  man.''' 
What  a  fall  was  that  for  a  disciple!     And  that 
disciple  Peter!    And  Peter  all  this  time  in  the  pres- 
ence of  Jesus!     And  all  this  only  a  few  hours  after 
that  earnest  warning,  '^ Simon,  Simon,  Satan  hath 
desired  to  have  thee,  that  he  may  sift  thee  as  zvhcat ! ' ' 


96  NEW  TESTAMENT   CONVERSIONS. 

A  few  hours  after  that  clear  prediction,  meant  to 
prevent  the  denial:  ^^ Before  the  cock  crow  twice 
thou  shall  deny  Tne  thrice. ' '  And  those  tender  words 
''''But  I  have  prayed  for  thee.''''  And  that  confident 
boasting,  "  Though  all  should  be  offended^  yet  will 
not  /. "  ''''I  am  ready  to  go  with  thee  to  prison  and 
to  death  /' '  We  are  shocked  at  Peter  !  We  are 
ready  to  hold  up  our  hands  in  holy  horror!  We 
are  eager  to  hurl  our  anathemas  at  the  miscreant! 

Let  us  not  be  hasty.  We  have  before  us  the 
natural  manifestations  of  the  remains  of  ''''the  old 
man.,  which  is  corrupt  according  to  the  deceitful 
lusts.''''  We  all  carry  the  remnants  of  that  same 
old  nature.      I^et  us  not  be  high-minded.,  but  fear. 

We  have  looked  into  the  character  of  Peter,  and 
seen  in  it  the  remote  causes  that  led  to  that  sad 
fall.     There  were  also  immediate  causes. 

We  have  already  seen  that  Peter  did  not  know 
himself  Therefore,  he  did  not  mistrust  himself 
On  the  other  hand,  he  had  a  large  amount  of  self- 
confidence.  Jesus  had  several  times  on  that  event- 
ful night  exhorted  him  to  "  watch  and  pray  that  ye 
enter  not  into  temptation  :  the  spirit  indeed  is  will- 
ing.^ but  the  flesh  is  weak.''''  Peter  did  not  feel 
himself  weak,  and  therefore,  after  each  exhortation 
to  watch^  he  had  gone  to  sleep.     Had  Peter  watched 


FALL  AND  RKCONVERSION  OF  PKTER.    97 

and  prayed  in  the  garden  as  directed,  Tie  would 
have   been   stronger  when  he  came  to  the  High 
Priest's  palace.     Had   he  not  trusted  too  much  in 
self,  he  probably  would  not  have  slept  away  those 
momentous  hours  when  his  Redeemer  was  crushed 
to  the  earth  under  the  load  of  man's  sin. 
Here  was  an  immediate  cause  of  his  fall. 
Another  cause,  close^V  connected  with  this  one, 
was  his  running  needless  risks.     He  had  not  been 
told   to  follow  Jesus  to  the  trial.     He   had  been 
clearly  told  that  he  could  not  and  should  not  inter- 
fere to  help  his  Master.     His  duty,  for  the  present, 
was  to  let  matters  take  their  course. 

But  he  went  to  the  palace.  He  mingled  freely 
with  the  enemies  of  his  Lord.  He  sat  down  among 
them  and  warmed  himself  by  their  fire.  What  a 
place  for  an  apostle  who  had  no  mission  there  and 
no  motive  but  to  see  the  end. 

Ah,  Peter!  Better  would  it  have  been  for  you, 
one  of  the  keenest  smarts  would  have  been  spared 
the  Master,  if  you  had  waited  at  a  distance  till  He 
had  again  required  your  service!  They  that  rush 
needlessly  and  heedlessly  into  danger  have  no  right 
to   count   on   divine  protection. 

What  a  terrible  weapon  is  ridicule!  How  many 
disciples  have  done  like  Peter!     Uncalled  by  duty, 


98  NEW  TESTAMENT   CONVERSIONS. 

and  not  for  the  sake  of  doing  good,  they  have 
mingled  with  the  enemies  of  their  lyord.  They 
have  warmed  themselves  at  the  coal-fires  of  the 
world.  They  walk  in  the  counsels  of  the  nngodly^ 
stand  in  the  way  of  sinners^  and  sit  in  the  seat  of 
the  scoiniful.  The  finger  of  scorn  is  pointed  at 
them.  They  wilt,  and  shamefully  deny  the  Lord 
that  bought  them. 

Beware  of  bad  company! 

But  we  hasten  to  notice  the  recovery  or  re-con- 
version of  Peter. 

What  brought  it  about?  The  crowing  of  the 
cock,  say  some.  Such  expounders  tell  us  that  a 
thunder-storm,  a  grievous  loss,  a  sad  disappoint- 
ment, the  news  of  an  accident,  or  the  sight  of  a 
funeral,  has  converted  many  a  sinner.  We  do  not 
believe  it.  Neither  the  crowing  of  a  cock,  nor  a 
fright,  nor  an  affliction  of  any  kind,  is  in  itself  a 
means  of  Grace.  These  things  do  not  carry  renew- 
ing or  sanctifying  power.  They  are  of  use  only  in 
so  far  as  they  make  one  think,  as  they  direct  atten- 
tion to,  call  to  mind,  and  drive  to  the  Word  and  the 
sacraments.  These  are  God's  means  of  Grace. 
They  carry  His  Spirit,  His  life,  and  His  power. 

So  it  was  with  Peter.  He  hadn't  noticed  or  paid 
attention  to  the  first  crowing;  but  now  that  crowing 


FALL  AND   RECONVERSION  OF  PETER.  99 

startled  him,  it  recalled  the  Word.  Then  Peter  re- 
membered the  word  of  Jesus.  That  Word  was  tJic 
szvord  of  the  Spirit.  It  cut  down,  it  showed  Peter 
his  awful  sin. 

Thus  do  the  providences  of  God  bring  the  sinner 
to  the  Word  and  the  Word  does  its  own  blessed 
work.  Where  there  is  or  never  has  been  a  Word 
of  God,  there  all  the  providences  have  never  con- 
verted a  single  soul. 

As  the  Word  pierced  Peter's  heart,  he  looked 
and  saw  Jesus  turned  and  looking  at  him.  Had 
Jesus  turned  permanently  away  from  Peter,  would 
Peter  ever  have  really  turned  to  Him  ?  We  believe 
not.  In  this  case  also  He  turned  to  Peter  before 
Peter  turned  to  Hiin.  God  always  comes  first  to 
us. 

That  look  of  Jesus,  so  full  of  grief,  and  compas- 
sion, and  yearning !  Oh  !  how  it  went  to  Peter's 
heart.      It  recalled  still  more  forcibly  His  Word. 

It  was  enough;  Peter  did  not  resist  that  Word. 
It  did  its  own  blessed  work.  Peter  went  out  and 
wept  bitterly.  All  his  bravado  was  gone.  All  his 
self-trust  had  vanished;  he  was  humbled  into  the 
dust.  His  heart  cried  out,  "I  am  z///^."  ''^  I  loathe 
myself''     He  was  truly  penitent. 

But  his  penitence  grew  into  faith.     Had  it  not, 


lOO  NEW  TESTAMENT  CONVERSIONS. 

it  would  have  turned  to  despair.  His  heart  turned 
back  to  Jesus;  eagerly,  restlessly,  sadly,  and  no 
doubt  prayerfully,  he  awaited  events.  On  the 
morning  of  the  resurrection,  he,  with  John,  was 
the  first  man  at  the  tomb;  he  was  the  first  to  enter 
into  the  sepulchre.  Surely  his  faith  had  again 
turned  to  Jesus;  he  was  again  converted.  Jesus 
sent  to  him  His  first  personal  message  by  the 
women;  and  Peter  was  the  first  apostle  to  have  a 
private  interview  with  his  risen  Lord.  Jesus  had 
predicted  his  conversion  or  turning  back,  and  now 
the  prediction  was  fulfilled. 

From  the  example  of  Peter  ' '  let  him  that  think- 
eth  he  standeth^  take  heed  lest  he  fall^'''^  and  let  him 
who  has  fallen,  learn  how  to  rise  again. 


SERMON  VII. 


THE  CONVERSION  OF  THE  DYING  THIEF. 

Luke  xxiii.  39-44. 


Luke  xxiii.  39-44.  And  one  of  the  malefactors  whicli  were 
hanged  railed  on  Him,  saying,  If  thou  be  Christ,  save  Thyself 
and  us. 

But  the  other  answering  him,  rebuked  him,  saying,  Dost  not 
thou  fear  God,  seeing  thou  art  in  the  same  condemnation  ?  And 
we  indeed  justly  ;  for  we  receive  the  due  reward  of  our  deeds  ; 
but  this  man  hath  done  nothing  amiss. 

And  he  said  unto  Jesus,  Lord,  remember  me  when  thou 
com  est  into  (in)  thy  kingdom. 

And  Jesus  said  unto  him.  Verily  I  say  unto  thee,  to-day  shalt 
thou  be  with  me  in  paradise. 


SERMON   VII. 

The  scene   of  our   text  is  laid  amid  the  most 
tragic  and  exciting  surroundings. 

A  little  outside  of  the  city  of  Jerusalem,  just  be- 
yond its  north  wall,  is  a  bare  elevation,  overlooking 
the  city  and  its  temple.  An  immense  and  excited 
crowd  of  people  are  gathered  there.  It  is  a  mixed 
multitude.  The  rabble  from  the  streets  of  Jerusa- 
lem are  there.  The  small  traffickers  who  have 
come  to  the  city  to  make  money ^ofif  the  Passover 
crowd  are  there.  The  villagers  and  peasants  of 
Judea  and  Galilee  and  remoter  parts  are  there, 
come  to  Jerusalem  to  keep  the  feast  of  the  Passover. 
The  officials  and  dignitaries  of  the  temple,  the  re- 
licrious  rulers  and  teachers  of  the  people,  the 
Scribes  and  Pharisees,  the  chief  priests  and  elders 

are  there. 

In  the  centre  of  that  surging  and  boisterous  mass 
of  humanity  is  a  band  of  Roman  soldiers.  In  the 
midst  of  that  band  stand  three  crosses,  and  on  them 
hang  the  naked  victims,  enduring  the  intensest 
agony  and  the  fiercest  tortures. 

And  who  is  that  central  figure,  so  different  from 
(103) 


I04  NEW  TESTAMENT  CONVERSIONS. 

the  others  ?  What  means  that  sublime  appearance, 
that  look  of  heaven  on  His  face,  though  marred 
with  anguish  and  blood?  Let  us  look  on  in  rever- 
ence and  adoration.  It  is  the  Lamb  of  God  on  the 
self-chosen  altar  of  sacrifice,  making  expiation  for 
the  sins  of  the  world. 

We  desire  at  present  to  look  more  particularly  at 
one  of  the  other  victims.  They  are  called  male- 
factors or  thieves — more  literally,  robbers.  Prob- 
abl}^  men  like  Barabbas,  who  had  been  engaged  in 
revolt  against  the  Roman  government,  and  had 
been  guilty  of  robbery  and  murder. 

The  one  is  well-known  to  us  by  the  name  "  The 
Dying  Thief,"  or  "The  Penitent  Malefactor." 

His  sudden  penitence  and  conversion  have 
afforded  matter  for  much  speculation.  They  have 
been  made  the  basis  of  dangerous  errors  and  soul- 
destroying  practices.  ♦ 

It  is  well  then  for  us  to  carefully  and  prayerfully 
study  that  remarkable  conversion.  We  naturally 
look  first  for  the  cause  of  that  change  of  heart. 
What  was  it  that  so  powerfully  influenced  that 
criminal  and  softened  his  heart  ? 

There  are  some  who  believe  that  he  had  come  in 
contact  with  Jesus,  or  at  least  heard  about  Him  in 
former  times;  that  if  he  had  not  himself  witnessed 


CONVERSION  OF  THE   DYING  THIEF.  I05 

His  blameless  and  benevolent  life,  seen  some  of  His 
mighty  works  and  heard  some  of  His  life-giving 
words,  others  had  told  him  of  these  things.  There 
seems  to  be  some  ground  for  this  position  in  the 
words  '"''this  man  hath  done  nothing  amiss.'''' 

But  this  is  at  best  an  inference,  and  we  cannot 
build  positively  on  it.  ^ 

But  we  do  know  that  this  man  had  been  led  out 
from  the  hall  of  Pontius  Pilate,  through  the  streets 
of  Jerusalem  and  up  to  Gabbatha,  in  company  with 
Jesus.  The  title,  "  This  is  Jesus  the  King  of  the 
Jews,''''  had  been  either  carried  ahead  or  hung  to 
the  neck  of  Jesus.  This  alone  was  enough  to  make 
that  man,  in  whom  all  seriousness  and  right  feeling 
had  not  yet  been  crushed,  think.  He  had  noticed 
the  strange  calm  dignity,  the  unearthly  demeanor, 
the  heavenly  look  of  this  fellow  prisoner.  He  had 
heard  and  seen  the  bitter  lamentations  of  the  women 
for  Jesus.  He  had  heard  those  awful,  search- 
ing and  prophetic  words  from  the  thorn-crowned 
Jesus:  '''' Daughters  of Jcrtisalem,  weep  not  for  me, 
but  weep  for  yourselves,  and  for  your  children.  For, 
behold,  the  days  are  coming  in  the  which  they  shall 
say.  Blessed  are  the  barren  and  the  wombs  that 
never  bare,  and  the  paps  which  never  gave  stick. 
Then  shall  they  begin  to  say  to  the  mountains,  Fall 


Io6  NEW  TESTAMENT  CONVERSIONS. 

Oil  tis ;  and  to  the  hills ^  Cover  us.  For  if  they  do 
these  things  in  a  green  tree^  what  shall  be  done  in 
the  dry.''^ 

Pregnant  words  !  Fearful  warning !  Words 
peculiarly  quick  and  powerful  and  sharper  than 
any  two-edged  sword^  pierchig  even  to  the  dividing 
asunder  of  the  joints  g.nd  marrow^  and  discerners 
of  the  thoughts  and  intents  of  the  htart. 

This  malefactor  had  heard  the  taunts  and  jeers 
of  the  crowd.  And  from  these  bitter  scoflEings  he 
learned  what  Jesus  had  claimed  for  Himself,  that 
He  was  ''the  Christ,''  ''the  Son  of  God,''  that  He 
' '  SAVED  others. ' ' 

In  the  midst  of  their  fiendish  insults  and  injuries 
Jesus  had  calmly  prayed,  "  Father,  forgive  them, 
for  they  know  not  what  they  do."  How  confidently 
this  Sufferer  cast  those  breaking  eyes  upward  and 
called  God  "Father!"  What  divine  love  and 
compassion  breathed  forth  in  that  petition!  *And 
all  this  the  thief  had  heard  and  seen.  Had  he  not 
had  enough  of  that  "  eng'rafted  Word  which  is  able 
to  save  the  soul?" 

Doubtless  the  Divine  Spirit  was  at  work. 
Through  the  spoken  and  the  embodied  Word. 
That  Spirit  was  convincing  him  of  his  own  sin,  of 
Christ's  righteousness,  and   of  a  judgment  which 


CONVERSION   OF  THE   DYING   THIEF.  IO7 

threatened  him,  but  from  which  the  righteousness 
of  this  Divine  Sufferer  could  save  him.  Thus  \Vas 
he  brought  to  that  true  repentance  that  needeth  not 
to  be  repented  of. 

We  notice  briefly,  in  the  next  place,  the  mani- 
festation of  his  penitence. 

From  the  accounts  of  the  two  former  evangelists 
it  appears  that  he  had  even  joined  in,  probably  very 
feebly,  with  the  railings  of  his  fellow  criminal. 
That  very  railing  may  have  been  an  unintentional 
expression  of  the  struggle  and  restlessness  within 
his  own  breast.  At  any  rate,  he  immediately  re- 
pented of  having  said  even  an  unguarded  word 
against  Jesus. 

And  now,  when  his  companion  again  breaks 
out  in  bitter  scofiing,  he  openly  rebukes  him,  and 
at  the  same  time  gives  expression  to  the  deep  pen- 
itence of  his  own  heart. 

He  publicly  confesses  that  they  are  having  to  do 
with  God — that  they  have  every  reason  to  fear^ 
and  that  they  are  under  condemnation. 

Thus  does  he  publicly  confess  his  own  guilt, 
without  extenuation  or  palliation.  He  recognizes 
indeed  they  tsx^  justly  under  condemnation,  y&r  we 
receive  the  due  reward  of  our  deeds. 

Here  indeed  we  see  the  very  essence  of  true /<?;?- 


I08  NEW  TESTAMENT  CONVERSIONS. 

itence.  Here  is  undoubted  evidence  of  a  work  of 
Grace.  The  sinner,  in  his  natural  state,  can  never 
thus  realize  his  own  ruined  and  condemned  state, 
and  the  righteousness  of  whatever  punishment 
God  sees  fit  to  lay  upon  him.  When  these  symp- 
toms appear,  then  the  Holy  Spirit  is  doing  His 
own  blessed  work.  That  warning  to  his  brother 
sinner,  that  solicitude  lest  he  plunge  himself  still 
deeper  into  the  abyss  of  suicidal  impenitence,  that 
warning  to  stop,  to  turn,  to  recognize  who  it  is  at 
whom  he  is  railing — all  that  also  proves  his  peni- 
tence. 

As  soon  as  the  sinner  is  really  concerned  about 
his  own  salvation,  just  so  soon  does  he  become 
anxious  for  the  safety  of  others. 

We  notice  in  the  third  place  the  faith  of  this  pen- 
itent one. 

He  sees  in  Christ  a  holy,  a  sinless  one,  who  has 
done  nothing  amiss.  He  confesses  that  Jesus 
^'^  knew  no  siny  He  acknowledges  and  addresses 
Him  as  ''''Lordy  He  believes  that  this  Lord  has  a 
kingdom  at  His  disposal.  He  believes  that  He  has 
power  to  help,  and  that  His  power  extends  beyond 
the  grave.  He  believes  that  this  King  not  only 
can  but  will  save  him.  Therefore  he  turns  to  Him. 
He  addresses  to  Him  that  humble  yet  large  petition. 


CONVERSION   OF  THE  DYING  THIEF.  109 

In  that  petition  he  claims  no  merit.  He  pleads 
not  that  because  of  his  own  suffering,  because  of 
his  own  faith  in  the  midst  of  unbelief,  because  of 
his  confession  in  the  midst  of  denial,  that  therefore 
the  Ivord  should  save  him. 

Oh,  how  many  there  are  who  comfort  themselves 
with  the  idea  that  because  they  have  had  such  a 
hard  time  in  this  wprld,  because  they  have  suffered 
so  much,  therefore  the  Lord  will  surely  save  them. 
Thus  they  would  make  a  merit  out  of  the  suffering 
which  they  often  bring  upon  themselves  by  their 
sin.  Or  they  make  a  7nerit  out  of  their  faith. 
They  flatter  themselves  that  God  owes  them  salva- 
tion, that  they  have  earned  it  by  believing. 

But  faith  earns  no  merit.  It  is  only  the  beggar's 
hand  that  reaches  out  to  receive  the  free  gift.  The 
malefactor  makes  no  plea  for  self.  He  simply  asks 
to  be  remembered.  And  thereby  he  bases  his  en- 
tire hope  on  Christ's  merit  and  mediation.  It  is 
not  faith  in  self,  but  faith  in  Christ. 

This  has  been  called  the  brightest  example  of 
faith  in  the  whole  Bible,  and  there  is  ground  for 
such  a  claim. 

Look  at  the  situation.  Jesus  of  Nazareth  was 
hanging  helpless  in  His  blood.  He  was  dying  a 
felon's  death.  He  had  been  tried  by  His  own  people, 


no  NEW  TESTAMENT  CONVERSIONS. 

condemned  as  a  deceiver  and  blasphemer.  The 
public  teachers  of  the  Jews,  the  guardians  of  the 
faith  and  of  the  temple,  repudiated  and  spurned 
Him.  His  own  followers,  who  had  professed  im- 
plicit confidence  in  Him  and  His  kingdom,  had 
also  given  Him  up  and  forsaken  Him. 

In  the  face  of  all  this,  this  man  believes  in  Him. 
He  sees  Him  hanging  there,  and  on  His  bowed 
head  there  rests  a  crown  of  thorns.  Yet  he  believes 
that  to  Him  belongs  a  crown  of  glory,  and  the 
throne  of  the  universe!  Those  eyes  are  filming  in 
death,  yet  he  believes  that  He  is  the  Prince  of  Life 
and  can  give  eternal  life  to  all  who  believe.  Those 
hands  are  now  nailed  fast,  yet  he  believes  that  they 
can  distribute  the  amnesties  and  endowments  of 
heaven. 

Surely,  from  that  malefactor's  cross  there  shines 
a  faith  that  is  radiant  with  the  reflection  from  the 
Redeemer's  cross.  Surely  this  dying  thief  is  well- 
fitted  to  be  the  first  trophy  of  the  cross  of  Christ. 
Lord,  give  us  such  a  faith  as  this ! 

And  that  faith  is  accepted.  Jesus  immediately 
responds,  ''''Verily^  I  say  unto  thee^  To-day  tJioii  shall 
be  with  me  in  Paradise^  Had  the  penitent  prayed 
*  '■Remember  7ne  T '  Jesus  answers,  ' '  Thoii  shalt  be 
with  mey     Instead  of  getting  merely  a  concern  in 


CONVERSION    OF   THE    DYING   THIEF.  Ill 

thought,  he  gets  a  place  with  Jesus  "  in  Paradise.'''' 
The  prayer  looked  to  an  indefinite  future,  ^^  when 
thoit  comest  in  thy  kingdom.''''  The  answer  is 
''''to-day^''''  not  in  the  distant  future,  thou  shalt  be 
with  Me. 

Jesus  always  gives  to  the  prayer  of  faith,  fat' 
more  exceedingly  above  all  that  we  cafi  ask  or  think. 
The  promise  is  to  Jerusalem,  i.  e.^  to  all  the  believ- 
ing, that  ''^  she  hath  received  of  the  Lord'' s  hand 
DOUBLE /or  all  her  sins. ' ' 

We  notice  here,  in  passing,  how  the  word  of 
Christ  to  the  penitent  malefactor  disposes  of  the 
old  heresy  lately  again  so  prominently  and  boldly 
put  forth  by  certain  Adventists  and  other  sects,  that 
the  soul  does  not  live  between  the  death  and  res- 
urrection of  the  body.  If  we  had  no  other  passage 
on  the  subject  but  this  one,  it  alone  would  give  the 
lie  to  all  soul-sleeper  heresies.  But  besides  this 
passage,  we  have  the  clear  declaration  of  Christ, 
when  speaking  of  the  God  of  Abraham  and  of  Isaac 
and  offacob^  He  says  that  God  is  not  the  God  of  the 
dead  but  of  the  living.  We  have  the  actual  appear- 
ance of  Moses  and  Elias  recorded;  one  as  a  glorified 
body  and  one  a  disembodied  spirit,  showing  clearly 
that  there  is  a  soul-life  and  a  body -life  beyond  this 
world.     Then  we  have  also  the  narrative  of  the 


112  NEW   TESTAMENT   CONVERSIONS. 

rich  man  and  Lazarus.  All  which  agrees  with 
Christ's  words  here  and  with  Paul's  expression 
that  to  be  absent  from  the  body  is  to  be  present  with 
the  Lord.  This  is  the  teaching  of  the  Word  from 
beginning  to  end. 

Our  passage  likewise  effectually  disposes  of  the 
figment  of  a  purgatory.  If  there  were  such  a  place 
where  the  sins  of  this  life  are  to  be  purged  by  fire, 
there  could  have  been  no  fitter  case  or  place  than 
this  to  set  it  forth. 

We  desire  to  offer  a  few  reflections  in  closing. 
We  have  here  a  case  of  true  conversion.  There  is 
no  room  for  the  least  doubt  about  its  genuineness. 
It  was  also  most  certainly  a  conversion  in  the  last 
hour  of  life  and  in  full  view  of  death. 

These  are  facts.  There  is  nothing  to  be  gained 
by  denying  them  or  explaining  them  away.  These 
facts  have  however  been  used  as  the  basis  of  un- 
warranted conclusions.  They  have  been  made  the 
basis  of  soul-destroying  doctrines  and  practices. 
They  have  been  so  used,  or  rather  abused.^  as  if  they 
were  written  for  the  special  purpose  of  encouraging 
the  putting  off  of  repentance  to  a  dying  day.  This 
is  certainly  an  inference  without  the  shadow  of  a 
support,  either  in  this  narrative  or  in  any  part  of 
the  Bible.     It  is  an  inference  inspired  from  beneath. 


CONVERSION  OF  THE  DYING  THIEF.  II 3 

The  teacliing  of  the  Word  is,  "To-day,  if  you 
will  hear  his  voice^  harden  not  your  hearts:' 
"Now?«y  the  accepted  time-"  "Now  is  the  day  of 
salvation;''  ''If  thou  hadst  known,  at  least  in  this 
thy  day,  the  things  that  belong  unto  thy  peace."  To 
him  who  did  postpone  and  say  to  his  soul,  ''Soul, 
thou  hast  much  goods  laid  up  for  many  days,"  God 
said,  "  Thou  fool,  this  night  shall  thy  soul  be  re- 
quired of  thee." 

At  the  very  most  this  incident  teaches  that  it  is 
barely  possible  to  be  saved  in  a  dying  honr.     An 
old  writer  has  well  said,  "we  have  this  ^;/^  case 
that  no  penitent  sinner  may  despair,  only  one  that 
no  sinner   may  presume."      The  Bible   covers   a 
history  of  nearly  four  thousand  years,  and  yet  it 
has  only  this  one  instance  of  a  dying  man's  conver- 
sion.    And  even  this  case  certainly  was  not  one 
who  had  deliberately  planned  to  postpone  attention 
to   his   soul's   salvation   to   a  dying  day.     In  all 
probability  this   was  W\^  first  time  that  Christ  and 
His  Word  w^ere  ever  brought  home  to  this  criminal. 
It  is  quite  likely  a  parallel  case  with  those  eleventh 
hour  laborers  who  could  truly  say,  "no  man  hath 
hired  us."     Certainly  no  parallel  to  those  who  de- 
liberately and  with  purpose  slight  every  call  from 
God's  Word,  wilfully  shake  off  every  impression 


6* 


114  NEW  TESTAMENT  CONVERSIONS. 

from  above,  grieve  away  the  Spirit  of  God,  and  say, 
"I'll  wait  till  I'm  old  or  threatened  with  death." 
What  must  be  the  state  of  heart  at  which  such 
arrive?  What  must  be  the  withering  and  harden- 
ing influence  of  madly  saying,  "I'll  first  grind  out 
the  corn  of  life;  I'll  use  all  the  good  meal  for  self, 
and  then  I'll  offer  the  bran  to  God."  For  such  per- 
sons there  is  not  a  single  promise  in  the  Bible. 
They  can  certainly  extort  no  consolation  from  the 
story  of  the  dying  thief.  The  Grace  of  God  in 
Christ  Jesus  can  truly  save  to  the  uttermost  allivho 
come  to  God^  i.  e.^  all  who  come  by  the  one  way  of 
genuine  penitence  and  faith.  But  the  probabili- 
ties all  favor  the  supposition  that  those  who  wil- 
fully neglect  and  resist  the  means  of  Grace  and 
postpone  repentance  to  a  dying  day  will  never  come 
to  true  penitence  and  faith.  Like  Jerusalem,  these 
things  will  be  "hid  from  their  eyes."  So-called 
death-bed  conversions  are  nearly  all  spurious. 

Again  it  has  been  said,  "this  man  was  sa.ved 
without  baptism,  without  the  Lord's  Supper,  with- 
out belonging  to  church."  Probably  this  is  all 
true;  but  it  by  no  means  follows  from  this,  as  some 
would  have  it,  that  therefore  the  Church  and  the 
sacraments  are  of  no  consequence.  To  say  this  is 
to  charge  our  Saviour  with  folly.     Fie  said,  "/  ivill 


CONVERSION   OF   THE   DYING   THIEF.  II5 

build  my  Chui^chy  He  instituted  the  sacraments 
and  made  tliem  binding  on  His  Church  till  He 
would  come  again.  He  connected  promises  and 
Grace  with  His  own  sacraments.  Now  if,  after  all, 
one  is  just  as  well  off  without  as  with  them,  then 
our  Saviour  made  a  great  mistake. 

But  the  dying  thief  was  saved  without  them. 
Yes,  for  the  simple  and  very  good  reason  that  he 
could  not  obtain  them.  Had  they  been  available, 
doubtless  he  would  most  thankfully  and  devoutly 
have  used  them.  But  as  he  could  not  have  them, 
God  in  mercy  took  the  desire  for  the  deed,  and 
conveyed  His  saving  Grace  through  the  oral  Word, 
without  the  Sacramental  Word. 

Our  Lutheran  confessions  and  theologians  clearly 
and  tersely  state  the  teaching  of  the  Word  on  the 
necessity  of  the  Sacraments  when  they  say  ' '  not 
the  absence  but  the  contempt  of  the  Gacraments  con- 
demns." 

With  those  who  could  have  the  sacraments  of 
Christ  and  the  privileges  of  the  Church,  but  neglect 
them,  it  is  contempt  of  what  God  has  ordained  as 
channels  of  Grace.  iVnd  such  can  extract  no  justi- 
fication of  their  course  and  no  hope  of  salvation 
from  the  conversion  and  salvation  of  the  penitent 
malefactor. 


Il6  NEW  TESTAMENT  CONVERSIONS. 

How  sad  that  men  will  wrest  even  the  most 
precious  portions  of  the  Scriptures  to  their  own  de- 
struction^ and  thus  turn  what  was  intended  as  a 
savor  of  life  tuito  life  into  a  savor  of  death  u7ito 
death. 

There  is  a  fountain  filled  with  blood 

Drawn  from  Immanuel's  veins, 
And  sinners  plunged  beneath  that  flood, 

Lose  all  their  guilty  stains. 

The  dying  thief  rejoiced  to  see 

That  fountain  in  his  day, 
And  there  may  I,  as  vile  as  he, 

"Wash  all  my  sins  away. 


SERMON   VIII. 


Tests  and  Fruits  of  a  True  Conversion 
AS  seen  in  Peter's  Reinstatement 

INTO  the  APOSTLESHIP. 

John  xxi.  15-20. 


John  xxi.  1^-20.  So  when  tliey  had  dined,  Jesus  saith  to 
Simon  Peter,  Simon,  son  of  Jonas,  lovest  thou  me  more  than 
these?  He  saith  unto  him,  Yea,  Lord;  thou  knowest  that  I 
love  thee.     He  saith  unto  him.  Feed  my  lambs. 

He  saith  to  him  again,  the  second  time,  Simon,  son  of  Jonas, 
lovest  thou  me  ?  He  saith  tmto  him.  Yea,  Lord ;  thou  knowest 
that  I  love  thee.     He  saith  unto  him,  Feed  my  sheep. 

He  saith  unto  him  the  third  time,  Simon,  son  of  Jonas,  lovest 
thou  me?  Peter  was  grieved,  because  he  said  unto  him  the 
third  time,  Lovest  thou  me  ?  And  he  said  unto  him.  Lord,  thou 
knowest  all  things ;  thou  knowest  that  I  love  thee.  Jesus  saith 
unto  him.  Feed  my  sheep. 

Verily,  verily,  I  say  unto  thee,  when  thou  wast  young,  thou 
girdedst  thyself,  and  walkedst  whither  thou  wouldst:  but  when 
thou  shalt  be  old,  thou  shalt  stretch  forth  thy  hands,  and  an- 
other shall  gird  thee,  and  carry  thee  whither  thou  wouldst  not. 

This  spoke  he,  signifying  by  what  death  he  should  glorify 
God.  And  when  he  had  spoken  this  he  saith  unto  him.  Follow 
me. 


SERMON    VIII. 

L\  a  former  discourse  we  considered  the  Fall  and 
Re-conversion  of  Peter. 

We  saw  how  after  all  the  admonitions,  warnings, 
and  prayers  of  Jesus,  after  all  his  self-confident 
boasting,  Peter  shamefully  denied  his  Lord.  He 
denied  Him  three  times. 

We  saw  further  how  the  crowing  of  the  cock 
brought  to  Peter's  remembrance  the  Word  of  the 
Lord,  and  how  that  Word  fell  like  a  hammer  and 
burned  like  afire.     We  saw  Peter  deeply  penitent 
in  his  bitter  tears.     We  saw  again  how  Peter  did 
not,  like  Judas,  turn  his  back  entirely  on  Jesus  and 
give  way  to  despair.     But  even  as  Jesus  had  turned 
upon  Peter  a  look  of  sorrow,  compassion,  and  love, 
so  Peter  turned  his  penitent  heart  towards  Jesus, 
and  N-earned  for  forgiveness  and  restoration.     We 
noticed  how  anxiously  Peter  awaited  further  devel- 
opments, how  he  was  early  at  the  sepulchre,  was 
the  first   man  to  enter  in  and  see  the  abandoned 
grave-clothes  of  his  dear  Lord,  and  was  the  first 
apostle  to  have  a  private  interview  with  the  risen 
Jesus.     Thus  did  Peter  show  his  faith.     He  was 
turned  back  again,  re-converted. 

("9) 


120  NEW  TESTAMENT   CONVERSIONS. 

At  that  private  interview  on  the  afternoon  of 
Resurrection  day,  Peter  no  doubt  made  full  confes- 
sion, and  Jesus  granted  full  absolution. 

On  the  evening  of  the  same  day  also,  Jesus  met 
the  ten  apostles  in  that  upper  chamber.  Peter  was 
one  of  them.  There  Jesus  recognized  the  apostle- 
ship  of  all  of  them  by  His  emphatic  words:  ^'' Peace 
be  2Uito  yoii:  as  my  Father  hath  sent  me^  even  so 
send  I  you.  And  when  he  had  said  this^  he  breathed 
on  theni^  and  saith  unto  them^  Receive  ye  the  Holy 
Ghost.  Whosesoever  sins  ye  reTnit.,  they  are  remitted 
unto  them;  ajid  whosesoever  sins  ye  retain^  they  are 
retained. ' ' 

Thus  had  Jesus,  on  the  very  day  of  the  Resur- 
rection, recognized  the  apostleship  of  Peter.  But 
notwithstanding  this,  it  was  due  to  Peter,  and  it 
was  due  to  the  other  apostles,  that  before  Jesus  re- 
ascended  to  His  Father,  Peter  should  make  a  spe- 
cial and  public  profession  and  receive  a  special  and 
public  commission.  It  is  this  special  profession 
and  commission  of  Peter  that  is  recorded  in  our 
text.  In  this  deeply  interesting  scene  Jesus  brings 
out  and  shows  us  the  Tests  and  Fruits  of  a  true 
Conversion. 

We  wo'CiQ.Q.  first  how  skilfully  and  yet  how  forci- 
bly Jesus  reminds  Peter  of  his  sin.     It  is  well  to 


TESTS   AND   FRUITS   OF   CONVERSION.  121 

be  reminded  often  of  weakness  and  sin.  Such  re- 
minders are  calculated  to  keep  believers  humble, 
to  make  them  more  watchful  and  prayerful,  to  in- 
cline them  to  a  more  diligent  use  of  the  means  of 
Grace,  and  in  every  way  to  keep  them  closer  to 
Christ.  Such  reminders  are  also  very  good  tests  of 
spiritual  life.  Those  who  have  little  or  no  spirit- 
ual life,  grow  impatient  under  such  reminders. 
The  self-righteous  become  angry  and  turn  away 
from  him  who  shows  and  recalls  their  sin.  But  a 
true  Christian,  one  who  has  in  him  the  elements 
of  the  new  life,  viz.,  penitence  and  faith,  grows 
humble  and  prayerful  and  pure  under  them. 
Thus  it  was  with  Peter. 

That  night  of  fruitless  toil  and  that  miraculous 
draught  at  Jesus'  word  would  naturally  recall  to 
Peter  that  similar  night  and  miracle  three  years 
before.  It  would  remind  him  how,  at  that  time, 
he  was  clearly  called  into  the  ajDostolic  band  to  be 
a  '"'' fisher  of  men.''''  It  would  naturally  bring  up 
the  reflection:  "How  unworthy  of  my  ofhce  and 
calling  have  I  proved." 

And  then  that  ''''fre  of  coals ^'^'^  how  naturally 
would  it  recall  that  coal-fire  in  the  court-yard  of 
the  high  priest's  palace! 

But  when  Jesus  asked  that  question  three  times 


122  NEW   TESTAMENT  CONVERSIONS. 

over,  then  would  Peter  keenly  feel  the  reminder  to 
the  thrice  repeated  denial. 

And  in  that  searching  question  Jesus  never  calls 
him  Peter^  but  only  Simoji^  son  of  Jonas.  This 
was  his  old  name;  the  name  by  which  he  was 
known  when  he  plied  his  trade  as  a  fisherman,  and 
knew  not  Jesus.  When  he  became  a  disciple  Jesus 
had  said:  ^''Thoii  shalt  be  called  Cephas^  which  is^ 
by  interpretation^  a  stone.''''  After  this  he  was  gen- 
erally known  by  that  new  name,  either  the  Syriac 
Cephas  or  the  Greek  Petros^  which  reminded  him 
of  his  new  life  and  destiny.  But  here  Jesus  ad- 
dresses him  every  time  by  the  old  earthly  name, 
as  if  to  say  "Where  is  that  Cephas,  that  rock 
which  seemed  so  firm  ?  Is  not  all  that  professed 
strength  and  stability  gone  ?  Is  it  not  merely  the 
son  of  Jonas  that  is  left?"  Peter  doubtless  felt 
the  reminder,  and  smarted  under  it  He  was 
gj'ieved. 

Still  further,  that  first  question  inquired  not 
merely  after  some  love,  but  after  a  special,  a  super- 
ior love.  Lovest  thou  me  more  than  these  ?  Again 
Peter  would  recollect  how  he  had  claimed  superior 
devotion.  He  had  put  himself  above  all  the  rest. 
''^Though  all  should  be  offended.^  yet  will  7tot  /." 
Where  was  that  fnore  love  ? 


TESTS    AXD    FRUITS   OF   CONVERSION.  123 

Thus  did  Jesus  probe  that  hitherto  wayward,  im- 
pulsive, and  self-confident  apostle.  Thus  did  He 
test  the  sincerity  and  the  genuineness  of  that  peni- 
tence. Thus  did  He,  at  the  same  time,  deepen  that 
godly  sorrow,  and  gently  draw  it  more  into  that 
repentance  to  salvation^  not  to  be  repented  of. 

Jesus  was  also  testing  and  developing  Peter's 
faith.  Was  Peter's  faith  strong  enough  to  admit 
and  bow  to  the  authority  of  Jesus  to  thus  examine 
and  probe  him?  Did  Peter  believe  that  this  Ques- 
tioner examined  not  merely  with  words,  but  that 
He  searched  the  heart,  that  He  looked  in  upon  the 
hidden  springs  and  motives  and  desires  of  the  in- 
most soul  ?  Peter's  faith  stood  the  severe  test.  He 
not  only  recognized  the  authority  of  Jesus,  but 
clearly  confessed  His  divine  omniscience  when  he 
said  ' '  Lord^  thoii  knowest  all  things ;  thou  know- 
est  that  I  love  thee.''''  Peter's  faith  was  not  only 
tested  and  proved,  but  in  the  testing  his  faith  was 
developed  and  strengthened. 

The  penitence  and  faith  of  Peter  were  proved. 
The  new  life  was  there.  Peter  was  again  in  a  con- 
verted state. 

But  Jesus  does  still  more.  He  wants  to  lay  bare 
that  which  is  the  very  breath  of  the  new  life. 
This  leads  us  to  notice  secondly  how  Jesus  probes 
for  Love. 


124  NEW  TESTAMENT  CONVERSIONS. 

Jesus  had  certainly  loved  all  the  disciples.  But 
to  Peter  He  had  granted  special  manifestations  of 
love.  How  had  He  not  borne  with  his  wayward- 
ness! How  often  He  had  reached  out  to  restrain 
and  uphold  the  impulsive  one!  How  patiently  He 
had  instructed  him!  How  earnestly  He  had  ad- 
monished and  warned  him!  How  gently  He  had 
led  him!  How  tenderly  He  had  prayed  for  him! 
How  freely  He  had  forgiven  him! 

It  is  in  the  very  nature  of  love  to  demand  love. 
Scarcely  anything  is  so  hard  to  bear  as  unrecipro- 
cated love.  Therefore  Jesus  asks  for  Peter's  love. 
Therefore  those  earnest,  searching  questions.  Jesus 
wants  to  know  from  Peter  whether  that  heart  of 
his  is  really  attached  to  Him,  whether  it  yearns 
for  Him,  whether  it  pants  for  Him  ^^  as  the  hart 
panteth  after  the  water-brooks. ' '  Jesus  wants  to  see 
whether  that  heart  beats  warm  for  Him,  whether 
it  longs  for  closer  fellowship  and  communion; 
whether  it  eagerly  responds  to  His  approach,  and 
hears  music  in  His  name  and  words.  Jesus  wants 
the  warm,  fervent,  glowing  feelings  of  the  heart 
for  Himself. 

Ah!  yes;  Jesus  demands  real  love  from  all  who 
would  be  His.  As  we  shall  see  in  a  moment,  Jesus 
is  not  satisfied  with  a  religion  that  is  all  feeling 


TESTS   AND   FRUITS   OF   COXVERSIOX.  1 25 

and  nothing  but  feeling.  But,  on  the  other  hand, 
let  it  never  be  forgotten  that  the  Word  of  God  no- 
where recognizes  a  religion  without  feeling.  There 
is  no  such  thing  as  a  cold-hearted,  loveless  Chris- 
tian. Feeling  has  its  place  in  true  religion.  It 
is  a  vital  part  of  genuine  piety.  It  is  not  the 
beginning  of  the  new  life.  It  does  not  come  first 
in  conversion.  It  is  not  the  first  step  in  a  return 
towards  God.  The  first  element  of  an  inner, 
spiritual  life  is  penitence,  the  next  is  faith;  these 
two  belong  together.  Thev  are  the  new  life.  But 
after  penitence  has  begun  and  grown  into  faith, 
then  love  is  sure  to  be  present.  It  is  the  inner 
witness,  the  manifestation,  the  very  breath  of  the 
new  life.  Loves t  thou  me?  was  asked  of  Peter. 
Lovest  tJioii  vie?  is  asked  of  every  one  who  professes 
to  be  turned  fro7n  darkness  to  light  and  from  the 
power  of  Satan  to  God. 

That  the  love  which  Jesus  demands  is  not  a  mere 
sentiment  is  seen  in  its  outward  manifestations. 
We  might  call  these  the  fruits  which  grow  on  the 
tree  of  love,  which  again  springs  from  the  roots  of 
penitence  and  faith. 

This  brings  us  to  notice  thirdly^  how  Jesus  brings 
out  and  shows  the  fruits  of  love. 

We  have  seen  that  love  is  the  vital  breath  of  the 


126  NEW  TESTAMENT  CONVERSIONS. 

new  life;  that  it  manifests  itself  in  the  inner  life; 
that  its  seat  is  in  the  emotional  part  of  our  nature; 
that  we  love  with  the  heart. 

But  this  love  of  the  heart  manifests  itself  or 
shows  itself  in  the  outward  life.  It  dare  not  remain 
confined  in  the  heart.  Jesus  does  not  recognize  a 
secret  love.  He  knew  that  Peter  had  love  in  his 
heart;  but  that  love  is  to  be  called  out;  it  is  to  prove 
itself.  And  now  we  shall  see  how  clearly  Jesus 
teaches  that  mere  feeling  is  not  enough. 

First:  That  love  of  the  heart  must  be  confessed 
by  the  lips.  Peter  must  speak  it  out  three  times. 
Peter  is  to  be  taught  that  public  confession  is  nec- 
essary. He  is  to  be  taught  further  that  such  confes- 
sion is  to  be  made  not  only  before  the  friends  of 
Jesus,  but  also  before  His  enemies.  Peter  had 
heretofore  more  than  once  witnessed  a  good  con- 
fession before  Jesus  and  the  other  disciples.  That 
is  not  so  hard  to  do.  It  is  easy  to  confess  the  sen- 
timents of  those  around  us.  But  Peter  had  proved 
insufficient  to  confess  before  enemies.  He  is  now 
to  learn  that  his  love  is  to  be  strong  enough  to 
confess  that  faith  before  bitter  and  angry  foes.  His 
love  is  to  enable  him  to  declare  his  convictions 
before  chief  priests,  and  scribes,  and  elders,  and  a 
howling  mob.     How  nobl}'  did  Peter's  love  after- 


TESTS   AND   FRUITS   OF   CONVERSION.  1 27 

wards  bear  this  fniit.  When  arrested,  tried  before 
the  Sanhcdrin,  charged  to  cease  preaching  Jesus 
and  the  resurrection,  and  threatened  with  dire  pun- 
ishment in  case  of  disobedience,  Peter  boldly  chal- 
langed  them  and  said  :  ^''IVJiether  it  be  right  in  the 
sight  of  God ^  to  hearken  nnto  you  more  than  2into 
God^  judge  ye.  For  zve  cannot  but  speak  the  things, 
which  we  have  seen  and  heard.'' ^     Acts  iv.  19,  20. 

The  love  of  the  heart  must  speak  from  the  lips,, 
even  before  enemies.  Again:  Love  shows  itself  in 
service.  True  love  is  not  only  willing  but  glad  to 
labor  for  the  loved  one.  Therefore,  every  time  that 
Peter  professed  to  love,  Jesus  bade  him  prove  that 
love  by  labor.     ' '  Feed  my  lambs.     Feed  my  sheep. ' ' 

lyovest  thou  Ale  ?  Then  love  those  who  are 
mine.  Thou  knowest  that  it  was  said  of  ]\Ie  ao-es 
ago:  "//<?  shall  gather  the  lambs  in  His  arms  and 
carry  them  in  His  bosom.^''  Therefore,  as  the  Good 
Shepherd,  I  have  a  special  regard  for  the  lambs. 
Feed  them  ^''ivith  the  sincere  milk  of  the  Word,  that 
they  may  grow  tJierebyy  Have  a  special  care  for 
the  weak  and  tender  ones.  Look  after  the  children 
and  after  such  new  disciples  who  are  as  yet  babes 
in  Christ.  Labor  for  them.  Feed  them.  Neglect 
not  the  older  ones.  Feed  my  sheep.  Give  to  them 
who  are  able  to  bear  it  the  strong  meat  of  God'' s 


128  NEW   TESTAMENT   CONVERSIONS. 

Word.     Let  your  whole  life  be  a  service  in  shep- 
herding my  flock.     Thus  let  your  love  make  you 
not  only  willing  but  eager  to  sj)e;2d  and  to  be  spent 
in  my  service.     Such  service  is  a  proof  and  a  fruit 
of  love.     And  without  willingness  to  labor,  profes- 
sions of   love  amount  to  nothing.     True    love    is 
something    more    than    mere    sentimental    gush. 
Peter's  love  did  thus  prove  itself.     His  whole  after- 
life was  a  service    of   love.     How   earnestly  and 
enthusiastically  he  gathered  in  Ihe  sheep  and  the 
lambs!     How  glad  he  was  to  announce  to  that  first 
in-gathered  flock:    ^'' For  the  promise  is  unto  you 
and  to  your  children^     How  eagerly  he  preached 
the  Gospel  in  Jerusalem   and  Judea  and  Samaria, 
and  afterwards  was  the  first  to  carry  it  to  the  Gen- 
tiles, and   thus  admitted   and  tended  some  of  the 
' '  other  sheep,  not  of  this  fold. ' '     He  became  second 
only  to  Paul  in  his  missionary  activity  and  left  for 
the  Church  of  all  ages  those  two  precious  epistles 
addressed    in    general    to   the  strangers   scattered 
abroad.     Peter's  love  bore  rich  fruit. 

Finally,  true  love  is  ready  to  sacj^ifice  and  to  sniffer. 

After  Peter  had  so  earnestly  avowed  his  devotion 
to  his  Master,  Jesus  further  told  him  that  even  con- 
fession in  the  face  of  opposers  and  blasphemers, 
and   in   addition   to   that  a   life  of  incessant  and 


TESTS  AND   FRUITS  OF  CONVERSION.  I2g 

wearisome  toil,  was  not  all — that  still  severer 
tests  would  be  made  and  still  more  precious  fruit 
demanded. 

'■'■Verily^  verily^  I  say  unto  thee,  ivhen  thou  zvast 
young,  tJtou  girdedst  thyself  and  ivalkedst  ivhither 
thou  wouldst:  but  when  thou  shalt  be  old,  thou  shall 
stretch  forth  thy  hands  and  another  shall  gird  thee 
and  carry  thee  whither  thou  ivouldst  noty     Cer- 
tainly very  pregnant,  earnest,  and  searching  words! 
Words  of  the  most  vital  import  to  all  who  would 
be  or  profess  to  be  God's  children!    Jesus  reminds 
Peter  that  there  was  a  time  when  he  was  his  own 
master.     In  those  young  days,  when  he  knew  not 
Jesus,  he  followed  no  law  but  inclination.      Thou 
girdedst  thyself  and  walkedst  whither  thou  zuouldst. 
What  a  lifelike  portrayal  of  the  unconverted  youth! 
Such  an  one  asks  only,  what  do  I  feel  like  doing  ? 
Where  do  I  feel  like  going?     But  now,  Peter,  thou 
hast  another  Master.     Thou  hast  voluntarily  be- 
come His  follower.     Thou  professest  to  love  Him. 
Now  thou  art  no  longer   thine  own.      Now  thou 
must  always  say,  "  Lord,  what  wilt  thou  have  me  to 
do?     Henceforth  ^/z^///^-;' shall  gird  thee.     All  self 
inclination,  all  self  pleasing,  must  now  give  way  to 
pleasing  Him  ^n\\<:>  first  loved  thee  and  gave  Him- 
self for  thee. 
7 


130  NEW  TESTAMENT  CONVERSIONS. 

The  time  will  come  when  because  of  thy  love 
others  will  carry  thee  whither  thou  woiildst  not. 
Peter  had  to  suffer  for  his  Lord  before  he  could  be 
glorified  with  Him.  He  was  imprisoned.  He  was 
girded  with  chains  to  sentinel  soldiers.  He  was 
bound  to  the  whipping-post  and  scourged.  And 
at  last,  as  all  the  earliest  records  testify,  he  was 
bound  to  a  cruel  cross  and  crucified  with  his  head 
downward.  And  thus,  when  he  was  old,  he  proved 
that  his  love  was  stronger  than  death,  and  by  his 
death  he  glorified  God.  And  thus  did  that  love 
bear  the  final  test  and  yield  the  choicest  fruit.  It 
was  more  than  a  sentiment. 

Dear  reader,  Do  you  love  Jesus  ?  How  is  it  with 
yowi  heart?  Is  it  listless,  lifeless,  cold?  Or  does  it 
beat  warm  with  affection  ?  Does  it  yearn  for  closer 
and  more  intimate  union  and  communion  ?  Does  it 
find  delight  in  the  communings  of  the  closet  ? 
Does  it  bound  with  pleasure  at  sound  of  His  Word  ? 
Does  it  find  its  highest  joy  in  communing  with  that 
dear  Master  in  His  Church,  in  His  Word,  and  es- 
pecially His  Sacramental  Feast?  Is  that  love  of 
the  heart  ready  whenever  called  upon  to  speak 
from  your  lips?  When  enemies  surround  you, 
when  your  Church,  your  Bible,  your  Lord  are  rid- 
iculed and  sneered  at,  are  you  ready  always  to  de- 


TESTS   AND   FRUITS   OF   CONVERSION.  -131 

fend  them?.  When  you  are  questioned  by  the 
scoffer,  when  the  finger  of  scorn  is  pointed  at  you, 
are  you  ready  to  say:  ''Yes,  I  am  trying  to  be  a 
Christian.   I  do  love  Jesus?" 

Does  your  love  prompt  you  to  labor  ?  Do  you  try 
to  bring  the  straying  and  neglected  lambs,  the  wan- 
dering and  endangered  sheep,  into  the  fold  of  the 
Church  ?  Do  you  try  to  feed  them  by  telling  them 
of  Jesus  and  His  love?  How  often  have  you 
spoken  to  your  careless,  God-less  neighbor  or  ac- 
quaintance or  companion  about  these  things?  How 
many  unpleasant  duties  have  you  lately  performed 
for  Jesus?  or  how  many  disagreeable  errands  have 
you  gone?     Lovest  thou?     Feed!  Feed!  Feed! 

Is  your  love  willing  to  sacrifice  ?  Do  you  still 
gird  yourself  and  go  where  you  feel  like  going? 
Or  do  you  always  ask  yourself.  Where  does  my 
Lord  want  me  to  go?  What  does  He  want  me  to 
do?  Does  your  love  always  constrain  you  and  per- 
mit Him  to  gird  and  lead  ? 

And  finally.  Is  your  love  willing  to  suffer?  Are 
you  ready,  for  love  of  Him  who  loved  you  with  an 
evej'lastiiig  love^  and  with  loving  kindness  drezv 
you,  who  stands  before  you  with  pierced  hands  and 
feet  and  side  and  asks,  Lovest  thou  me,  to  meet 
opposition,   to  lose  money,  to  lose  friends,   to  cut 


132  NEW  TESTAMENT  CONVERSIONS. 

associates,  to  turn  your  back  on  your  former  de- 
lights? Are  you  ready  to  take  up  your  cross  and 
follow  Him  ? 

Blessed  are  they  who   can   look  up  and  say  and 
sing: 

"  Do  not  I  love  Thee,  O  my  Lord? 
Behold  my  heart  and  see  ; 
And  cast  each  idol  from  its  throne, 
That  dares  to  rival  Thee. 

"  Is  not  Thy  Name  melodious  still 
To  mine  attentive  ear  ? 
Doth  not  each  pulse  with  pleasure  thrill 
My  Saviour's  voice  to  hear  ? 

"  Hast  Thou  a  lamb  in  all  Thy  flock 
I  would  disdain  to  feed  ? 
Hast  Thou  a  foe  before  whose  face 
I  fear  Thy  cause  to  plead  ? 

"  Thou  know'st  I  love  Thee,  dearest  Lord ; 
But  O,  I  long  to  soar 
Far  from  the  sphere  of  mortal  joys, 
That  I  may  love  Thee  more.  ' 


SERMON    IX. 


The  Conversion  of  the  Three  Thousand. 

Acts  ii.  37-42. 


Ads  ii.  37-42.  Now  wiien  they  heard  this,  they  -were  pricked 
in  their  heart,  and  said  unto  Peter  and  to  the  rest  of  the  apos- 
tles. Men  and  brethren,  what  shall  we  do  ? 

Then  Peter  said  unto  them,  Repent,  and  be  baptized  every 
one  of  you  in  the  name  of  Jesus  Christ  for  the  remission  of  sins, 
and  ye  shall  receive  the  gift  of  the  Holy  Ghost. 

For  the  promise  is  unto  you,  and  to  your  children,  and  to  all 
that  are  afar  off,  even  as  many  as  the  Lord  our  God  shall  call. 

And  with  many  other  words  did  he  testify  and  exhort,  saying, 
Save  yourselves  from  this  untoward  generation. 

Then  they  that  gladly  received  his  word  were  baptized  :  and 
the  same  day  there  were  added  unto  them  about  three  thousand 
souls. 

And  they  continued  steadfastly  in  the  apostles'  doctrine  and 
fellowship,  and  in  breaking  of  bread,  and  in  prayers. 


SERMON   IX. 

The  scene  of  our  text  is  laid 'in  Jerusalem.    The 
time  is  that  memorable  day  of  Pentecost  when  the 
Christian  Church  received  her  baptism  from  above, 
and  was  fully  equipped  for  her  work  and  mission. 
The  church  in  Jerusalem   was   then  made  up  of 
about  one  hundred  and  twenty  members,  with  the 
twelve  apostles  for  a  nucleus.     The  apostles  had 
been  instructed   by  Jesus   to    tarry  at  Jei'usalem 
until  they  would  be  endowed  with  power  from  on 
high.     That   full   endowment  had  now  come,  es- 
pecially upon  the  twelve,  and  also  upon  the  whole 
one  hundred  and  twenty;  otherwise  the  prophecy 
quoted   by  Peter  would  not  have   been    fulfilled. 
Not  that  there  had   been  no  Spirit  upon  the  be- 
lievers of  the  Old  or  New  Testament  before  this. 
Had  there  been  no  Spirit  of  God  at  all,  there  could 
have  been  no  believers  at  all.     For  the  Grace  that 
makes  believers  comes  not  by  might,  nor  by  power, 
but  by  my  Spirit,  saith  the  Lord. 

But  the  Spirit  had  not  come  in  His  full  New 
Covenant  measure  and  power.  This  full  and  com- 
plete endowment  of  which  the  prophets  and  Christ 


136  NEW  TESTAMENT  CONVERSIONS. 

had  spoken,  and  for  which  all  saints  had  waited 
and  longed,  had  now  come.  The  infant  Church 
was  now  fully  equipped  and  furnished  for  her  great 
work.  The  endowment  was  to  be  permanent.  The 
Spirit  had  come  to  stay.  Jesus  had  promised  Him 
as  a  substitute  for  His  own  visible  presence.  Jesus 
assured  His  sorrowing  disciples  that  He  would  not 
leave  them  comfortless  or  desolate  or  orphaned.  He 
had  clearly  and  unequivocally  promised,  '''•He  shall 
abide  with  you  forever. ' ' 

Had  He  come  as  a  transient  visitor,  to  operate 
mightily  and  then  depart,  and  at  a  time  of  special 
interest  to  come  again,  and  thus  arbitrarily  come 
and  go,  and  alight  now  on  this  one  and  n.ow  on 
that  one,  as  some  seem  to  imagine,  the  Church 
would  indeed  be  left  in  an  uncertain  and  comfort- 
less state. 

Since  He  came  to  stay,  we  need  look  for  no 
more  Pentecosts.  The  Spirit  has  been  in  the 
Church  since  that  coming.  Had  He  ever  left  the 
Church  entirely,  it  would  have  ceased  to  exist. 
He  began  on  that  very  day  of  His  coming  to  oper- 
ate through  means.  He  did  not  fall  on  the  three 
thousand  as  flames  of  fire,  but  reached  them 
through  Word  and  Sacrament. 

It  is  the  Conversion  of  tJie  Three  Thousand  that 
we  now  desire  to  study. 


CONVERSION  OF  THE  THREE  THOUSAND.      137 

We  inquire  first  who  were  these  three  thousand? 

It  was  the  season  of  Pentecost.  The  city  was 
crowded  with  strangers  come  from  near  and  far  to 
worship  at  the  Feast.  They  were  all  Jews,  or  such 
as  had  accepted  the  Jewish  religion.  The  blessings 
of  the  Gospel  also  were  to  come  to  the  Jew  first  and 
then  through  the  Jew  to  the  Gentile. 

Of  these  Jews,  many  were  devout.  They  were 
sincere  believers  in  and  worshippers  of  Israel's 
God.  To  these  belonged  the  persons  who  were 
amazed  and  were  in  doubt^  saying  one  to  another^ 
What  meaneth  this  ? 

Others  were  frivolous  triflers  or  scoffers  who 
mocking  said^  These  mett  are  full  of  new  wine. 

There  were  present  also  many  who  had  been 
there  at  the  last  Passover.  They  had  witnessed 
the  exciting  scenes  of  the  trial  and  crucifixion  of 
Jesus.  They  had  joined  in  the  insane  cry  of  the 
vi\\\\.\AtvAt'.  ''''Away  with  Him!  Criicify  Him  !  Cru- 
cify Hi)n  I "  Peter  therefore  directly  charges  them 
with  having  part  in  the  awful  crime  of  crucifying 
the  Son  of  God. 

All  these  people  had  now  had  six  weeks'  time  for 

reflection.     Some  of  them  at  least  must  have  heard 

of  the  strange  scenes  that  attended  the  death  of 

Jesus.     They   had    noticed    the    earthquake    and 

7* 


138  NEW  TESTAMENT  CONVERSIONS. 

darkness.  They  had  heard  of  the  rending  of  the 
temple's  vail.  They  had  heard  also  of  the  resur- 
rection. The  more  thoughtful  among  them  must 
have  pondered  and  wondered  and  questioned  con- 
cerning these  things.  To  such  a  multitude  Peter 
preached  his  sermon,  and  under  it  three  thousand 
were  converted. 

We  notice  secondly  the  conversion  itself. 

In  looking  at  the  process  of  their  conversion 
we  notice  how  first  their  minds  were  enlightened. 

They  looked  at  and  saw  Jesus  of  Nazareth  in  an 
entirely  new  light.  They  saw  that  He  was  indeed 
the  Anointed  of  the  Father,  the  promised  Mes- 
siah, the  Son  of  God.  They  understood  now  that 
His  coming,  His  life.  His  death,  His  resurrection, 
ascension,  mediatorial  reign  and  sending  of  the 
Spirit,  that  all  this  was  a  clear  and  complete  fulfil- 
ment of  the  prophecies,  the  hopes,  the  prayers  and 
longings  of  the  saints  of  all  ages. 

On  the  other  hand,  they  saw  themselves  in  a 
new  light.  They  were  now  willing  to  look  deep 
down  into  their  own  hearts,  and  look  back  over 
their  own  lives.  They  saw  their  hearts  full  of 
nothing  but  sin.  They  saw  their  lives  all  defiled 
by  transgression. 

Thus  were  they  enlightened  to  understand  the 


CONVERSION   OF  THE   THREE  THOUSAND.       1 39 

Saviour,  His  person  and  His  work.  Thus  had 
they  learned  also  to  see  themselves  as  poor  lost  and 
condemned  creatures.  This  was  the  first  step  in 
their  conversion.  It  ought  to  be  the  first  step  in 
every  true  conversion.  Before  we  can  expect  any 
one  to  turn*  from  the  wrong  to  the  right  road,  he 
must  be  instructed  as  to  what  is  the  right  road,  and 
why  it  is  right,  and  conversely  why  the  one  he  is 
on  is  wrong. 

But  enlightenment  alone  is  not  enough.  It  is 
not  yet  conversion.  One  might  be  considerably 
enlightened,  and  yet  not  saved.  It  is  possible  to 
have  quite  a  clear  understanding  of  Christ  and  His 
salvation,  to  know  much  about  Him,  and  not  knozu 
Him  as  a  personal  Saviour. 

It  is  possible  to  have  clear  ideas  of  the  nature 
and  guilt  of  sin  in  general,  to  be  able  to  give  ac- 
curate and  sound  definitions  of  sin,  to  be  able  even 
to  prove  one's  answers  by  properly  quoted  Scrip- 
ture, and  yet  have  no  deliverance  from  sin  and  con- 
demnation. The  three  thousand  did  not  only  have 
their  minds  enlightened;  but  through  the  mind 
the  heart  was  reached. 

This  brings  us  to  the  second  step  in  the  process. 
They  were  pricked  in  their  Hearts. 

Not  only  did  they   now   know  about  Jesus  of 


140  NEW  TESTAMENT  CONVERSIONS. 

Nazareth,  and  have  entirely  new  views  concerning 
Him,  but  they  sXso  felt  themselves  verily  guilty  be- 
cause of  Him.  Not  only  did  they  see  that  in  gen- 
eral all  are  sinners,  and  that  sin  in  its  inner  essence 
is  a  rejection  of  Christ,  but  their  own  hearts  were 
pierced  with  the  awful  feeling  of  their  own  fearful 
guilt  and  condemnation.  They  felt  the  awful  load 
of  personal  guilt  and  ruin.  Restless  and  self-con- 
demned, each  one  was  bowed  low,  and  the  lan- 
guage of  his  heart  was:  ^''  I  abhor  myself.''''  Thus 
had  the  arrow  of  conviction  pierced  to  the  quick, 
and  each  one  was  ready  to  reproach  himself  as  the 
guilty  one.  These  were  feelings  of  true  penitence. 
This  was  that  godly  sorrow  that  leadeth  to  repent- 
ance unto  life^  not  to  be  repented  of 

And  in  such  feeling  we  believe.  More  or  less  of 
it  must  enter  into  every  true  conversion.  It  came 
as  the  result  of  divine  illumination.  Instruction 
must  come  first.  The  mind  must  first  be  taught. 
The  judgment  must  first  be  reached  and  influenced, 
and  through  it  the  heart  or  the  feelings.  The 
grievous  mistake  that  many  make,  especially 
among  modern  revivalists,  is  that  they  appeal  di- 
rectly to  and  work  immediately  on  the  feelings. 
They  play  on  the  nerves,  they  work  up  an  excite- 
ment, they  rouse  a  deep  and  violent  feeling,  but  it 


CONVRRSION   OF   THE   THREE   THOUSAND.       141 

is  of  the  flesh.  It  is  not  the  result  of  intelligent 
conviction.  Hence  it  is  as  the  morning  cloud  and 
as  the  early  dew.  It  is  groundless  enthusiasm,  and 
results  in  the  saddest  disappointments  and  the  most 
dangerous  reaction,  doubt,  and  often  confirmed  un- 
belief. Such  feeling  is  not  religion,  but  a  snare 
and  a  delusion. 

We  notice  in  the  third  place  how  the  three  thou- 
sand had  their  zvills  influenced.  Their  desires  and 
purposes  were  turned  in  a  new  direction.  They 
manifested  this  in  their  anxious  and  sincere  in- 
quiry: ''''Men  and  brethren^  what  shall  we  dof'' 
We  have  been  doing  wrong.  We  have  been  pur- 
suing a  sinful  course.  We  now  want  to  do  right. 
We  zvant  to  be  helped  on  the  right  road. 

Here  was  a  true  turning  round,  a  real  conver- 
sion. The  language  of  the  natural,  sinful,  and 
unchanged  will  is,  '''' we  will  not  have  this  man  to 
reign  over  tis. ' '  The  sad  and  repeated  complaint 
of  God  and  Christ  is,  ye  will  not  come.  I  would 
have  gathered  thee.     Ye  would  not. 

These  men  now  say  zve  zuill.     Only  tell  us  how. 

In  every  true  conversion,  as  a  result  of  an  enlight- 
ened mind  and  a  contrite  heart  there  is  a  changed 
will.  This  was  the  third  step.  And  now  we  see 
how  the  whole  man  was  changed.     There  was  a 


142  NEW  TESTAMENT  CONVERSIONS. 

change  in  the  intellect,  in  the  sensibilities,  and  in 
the  will.  There  were  new  views,  new  emotions, 
and  new  purposes.  ' '  Behold^  I  make  all  things 
new  P'' 

In  all  this  process  we  must  also  see  the  springing 
and  budding  of  faith.  Had  they  not  believed  what 
Peter  preached  unto  them,  they  would  not  have 
been  pricked  in  their  heart.  Had  they  not  believed 
what  Peter  said  about  Jesus  of  Nazareth,  they  would 
not  have  felt  guilty  concerning  their  part  in  His 
death.  Neither  would  they  have  accepted  baptism 
in  His  name,  and  expected  through  it  the  remission 
of  sins.  They  clearly  believed.  Their  penitence 
had  grown  into  faith.  And  thus  we  see  that  they 
had  the  elements  of  the  new  life,  penitence  and 
faith.  And  when  Peter  told  them  to  repent^  he 
here  used  that  word  in  its  broadest  sense,  as  cover- 
ing the  whole  process  of  conversion,  and  showing 
them  that  they  were  already  ' '  doing ' '  what  was 
necessary  to  salvation. 

We  inquire  in  the  third  place;  ^''How  was  this 
conversion  brought  about  T ' 

The  answer  is  not  far  to  seek.  It  was  brought 
about  clearly  by  Peter's  preaching  of  the  Word. 
Thus  did  God  in  the  very  outstart  show  to  the 
young  Church  that  henceforth  His  Spirit  would  op- 


CONVERSION   OF   THE   THREE   THOUSAND.       143 

erate  through  the  Word,  and  that  \t  pleased  Him  by 
the  foolishness  of  preaching  to  save  them  that  be- 
lieve. 

Peter,  in  preaching  the  Word,  preached  Christ  as 

the  very  heart  and  substance  of  that  Word.     He 

showed  them  that  this  Pentecostal  miracle  was  only 

a  direct  and  clear  fulfilment  of  their  own  prophecy; 

that   their  psalms  also  clearly  predicted  fesus  of 

Nazareth,  a  man  approved  of  God  among  you   by 

miracles  and  wonders  and  signs,  zvhich   God  did  by 

Him  in   the  midst  of  you,   as  ye  yourselves   also 

know.     He  went  on  to  sketch  rapidly  the  death, 

resurrection,    and   exaltation   of    this    Jesus,    and 

showed  how  David  had  foreseen  and  foretold  all 

this.     He  charges  them  directly  and  plainly  with 

the  awful  sin  of  rejecting  and  crucifying  this  Lord. 

He  assures  them  that  this  same  Jesus  had  shed  forth 

this  zvhich  they  did  now  see  and  hear. 

And  this  Word  was  the  vehicle  of  the  Spirit. 
Through  it  He  convinced  them  of  their  own  sin, 
their  need  of  another's  righteousness,  even  Christ's, 
and  the  certainty  oi  judgment  on  all  the  children 
of  the  prince  of  this  world.  The  Spirit  of  zvisdojn 
and  light  comes  through  the  Word,  and  therefore 
'''The  entrance  of  thy  Word  giveth  light.^'  The 
Spirit  in  the  Word  convinced  them  of  sin,  and  there- 


144  NEW  TESTAMENT  CONVERSIONS. 

fore  :  '■'■By  the  law  is  the  knowledge  of  siny  Their 
wills  were  turned,  '•'' 7tol  by  might  nor  by  power^ 
but  by  my  Spirit^  saith  the  Lord^''''  and  the  Gospel^ 
through  which  that  Spirit  comes,  became  ''''the 
po7V('f  of  Cod  unto  salvationy  They  certainly 
did  "  ncjt  by  their  own  reason  or  strenj^lh  Ijelieve 
in  Jesus  Christ,  tlieir  Lord,  or  come  to  Ilini,"  for 
"  No  man  can  say  that  fesus  is  the  Lord^  but  by  tlw 
Holy  Ghosty  Tliat  Holy  Ghost  came  with  the 
Word,  and  so  '  ''faith  came  by  hearing^  and  hearing 
by  the  Word  of  God.''"' 

Tluy  gladly  received  the  Word.  They  might 
have  resisted.  This  is  man's  melancholy  preroga- 
tive. Man  cannot  take  the  first  step  towards  sav- 
ing himself.  God  must  always  come  first  to  the 
sinner.  But  man  can  dismiss  the  Saviour  when 
He  does  come.  Man  cannot  raise  himself  out  of 
the  deep  pit  and  the  miry  clay,  Init  lie  can  beat 
back  the  hand  that  reaches  down  from  heaven  to 
raise  and  save  him.  No  doubt  many  who  heard 
Peter  did  resist.  Tlie  charge  of  vStephen  a  few 
weeks  later  was,  "  Ye  do  ahvays  resist  I  he  Holy 
Ghost  y 

Thus  does  God  reserve  to  Himself  all  the  glory 
of  saving  man,  and  yet  throw  on  man  all  the  re- 
sponsibility of  being  saved.     J I  all  becomes  clear 


COXVKRSIOX   OF   THE   THREE   THOUSAND,       1 45 

when  we  accept  the  old,  sound  and  scriptural  doc- 
trine, that  the  Spirit  of  God  carries  the  Grace  of 
God  through  the  Word  of  God. 

But  why  did  Peter  instruct  those  people  to  be 
baptized?  Was  not  the  Word  enough?  Yes.  And 
baptism  is  only  another  and  a  further  application 
of  that  same  Word,  for  "Baptism  is  not  simply 
water,  but  it  is  the  water  comprehended  in  God's 
command,  and  connected  with  God's  Word." 
(Luther's  Catechism.)  There  is  no  valid  baptism 
without  the  Word.  Oceans  of  water,  without  God's 
Word  used  in  the  administration,  would  be  utterly 
useless.  Baptism  has  therefore  been  well  called 
"the  visible  Word,"  or  "the  sacramental  Word." 
There  is  a  great  blessing  in  baptism,  because 
the  Spirit-bearing  Word  is  alw^ays  connected  with 
it.  Therefore,  these  strong  expressions,  ''''Born  of 
zvater  and  of  the  spirit  ;^''  '■'' Be  baptized  .  .  .  .for 
the  remission  of  sins  ;''''  "  The  washing  of  regerier- 
ation  ajid  renewing  of  the  Holy  Ghost  /' '  '  ''Baptism 
doth  also  now  save  ns;''^  ^''Baptised  into  Christ^'*'' 
and  other  like  forcible  passages. 

There  was  indeed  a  great  blessing  to  these  peni- 
tent believers  in  their  baptism.  The  preached 
Word  carried  the  Spirit  and  Grace  of  God  to  them 
collectively.     The  sacramental  Word  carried  them 


146  NEW  TESTAMENT  CONVERSIONS. 

to  them  iiidividiially .  The  preached  Word  offered 
and  carried  forgiveness  and  salvation  to  the  crowd. 
The  sacramental  Word  carried  them  to  them  one 
by  one.  The  former  held  out  pardon  and  life  to 
the  mass,  the  latter  to  each  one  personally  and  in- 
dividually, as  if  he  were  the  only  one.  Under  the 
preaching  of  the  Word,  some  timid,  doubting  one 
might  have  said,  ' '  That  is  all  very  good,  but  I  fear 
it  is  not  for  me. ' '  But  when  the  water  and  Word 
of  baptism  are  applied,  and  each  one  is  taken 
singly  and  called  by  name,  then  faith  is  implanted 
and  mightily  strengthened,  as  each  recipient  real- 
izes, the  blessing  is  now  bestowed  on  me  personally. 

And  this  individualizing,  this  taking  of  each 
penitent,  hungry  and  thirsty  one  by  himself,  is  in- 
deed one  of  the  chief  blessings  in  both  Sacraments, 
in  the  Sacrament  of  the  altar  as  well  as  in  the 
Sacrament  of  baptism. 

And  thus  we  see  that  the  conversion  of  this  mul- 
titude was  brought  about  by  the  means  of  Grace, 
as  ordained  by  Christ,  the  Great  Head  of  the 
Church,  viz.,  the  Word  and  the  Sacraments — for 
Ihe  other  Sacrament  also  was  used  after  they  were 
baptized. 

And  these  were  indeed  all  the  means  that  the 
apostles  used  at   any  time.     They  did  not  worry 


CONVERSION   OF  THE  THREE  THOUSAND.       1 47 

themselves  with  the  question  "  How  shall  we  reach 
the  masses?"  They  had  faith  enough  in  Christ 
to  believe  in  the  means  they  had  received  from  His 
hands,  and  these  they  prayerfully  used. 

And  these  same  old  means,  wherever  rightly 
used,  have  been  effective  in  the  conversion  of  sin- 
ners and  the  sanctifying  of  saints. 

We  might  notice  in  passing  here  that  these  con- 
versions, as  nearly  all  the  conversions  recorded  in 
the  New  Testament,  were  those  of  adults,  to  whom 
the  Gospel  had  come /or  the  first  time.     And  there- 
fore we  read  of  adult  baptisms.     The  parents  had 
to  be  reached  before  the  children.  After  the  parents 
had  become  believers,  we  have  no  doubt  whatever 
that  they  had  their  children  also  baptized.     Peter, 
indeed,   when    he   exhorts   them   to   be   baptized, 
says  in  the  same  breath,  ''for  the  promise  is  unto 
you   and  to  your  children:'     As  Jews  also   they 
knew  that  it  was  God's  own  order  that  infants  had 
a  place  in  the  covenant,  and  received  the  Old  Tes- 
tament sacrament  of  circumcision.    God  had  never 
revoked  this,  His  own  order  of  infant  membership 
in  His  Church.     Therefore  it  stood;  for  man  can- 
not annul  what  God  has  ordained. 

In  conclusion,  we  notice  briefly  the  evidences  of 
these  conversions. 


148  NEW  TESTAMENT  CONVERSIONS. 

First  they  were  ''''added''''  to  the  apostles.  In 
the  last  verse  of  the  chapter  it  is  said  "and  the 
Lord  added  to  the  CJmrch  daily  such  as  should  be 
saved."  They  at  once  became  living  and  active 
members  of  the  Church  of  Christ.  A  true  convert 
always  wants  to  have  a  spiritual  home.  He  finds 
it  in  the  Church.  He  cannot  despise  or  make  light 
of  the  institution  founded  by  Christ  for  the  salva- 
tion of  man. 

Again,  they  continued  steadfastly  in  the  apostles' 
doctrine.  They  accepted  the  teaching  or  doctrine 
of  the  apostles.  They  learned  more  and  more  of 
it.  They  held  fast  to  it.  They  had  no  notions  or 
opinions  of  their  own.  The  apostles'  doctrine  was 
good  enough  for  them.  They  wanted  no  faith  ex- 
cept that  which  was  once  delivered  to  the  saints. 

Further:  They  continued  in  the  fellowship.^  in 
the  community,  or  brotherhood  of  the  apostles. 
They  wanted  no  other  society.  They  no  longer 
found  pleasure  in  the  company  of  unbelievers. 
They  cut  the  acquaintance  of  those  who  were  ene- 
mies of  their  Lord.  A  blessed  fruit,  a  sure  test  of  a 
true  conversion.     They  contimied'xw  the  fellowship. 

And  still  more:  They  continued  in  the  breaking 
of  bread.  That  is,  they  ate  their  evening  meals 
tog-ether.     These  meals  were  closed  with  the  Lord's 


CONVERSION   OF   THE   THREE   THOUSAND.       1 49 

Supper.  They  partook  frequently  and  devoutly 
of  that  Holy  Sacrament.  No  doubt  they  found  it 
meat  indeed  and  drink  indeed. 

A  true  convert  always  prizes  highly  the  Com- 
munion of  the  Lord's  Supper.  He  does  not  slight 
and  neglect  it  for  every  trivial  excuse.  He  finds 
in  it  the  Holy  of  Holies  of  the  militant  Church, 
the  most  sacred  spot  and  act  this  side  of  heaven. 

And  finally:  They  continued  steadfastly  in 
prayers.  No  doubt,  they  had  their  private  prayers. 
There  is  no  such  thing  as  a  Christian  without 
prayer.  While  the  true  child  of  God  wants  to  have 
his  times  and  seasons  to  be  alone  with  his  Father, 
he  also  wants  the  help  and  blessing  of  jDublic 
prayer.  These  early  Christians  wanted  the  prayers 
of  the  Church.  They  continued  in  prayer.  Every 
believer  wants  the  fellowship  of  prayer.  He  wants 
the  Church's  prayers.  He  wants  to  lift  his  heart 
upwards  on  the  congregation's  devotions.  To  him 
there  is  an  inspiration  and  an  elevation  in  such 
public  worshij),  which  lifts  him  above  the  sordid 
things  of  earth,  and  helps  him  to  set  his  affections 
on  things  in  heaven. 

And  thus  did  this  new  life  of  these  new  converts 
manifest  itself.  Thus  did  it  develop  and  increase 
more  and  more. 


150  NEW  TESTAMENT  CONVERSIONS. 

Are  we  converted?  Does  our  life  thus  manifest 
itself  in  the  beauty  of  holiness,  in  the  Communion 
of  Saints  ? 

What  strange  perplexities  arise, 
What  anxious  fears  and  jealousies  ! 
What  crowds  in  doubtful  light  appear, 
How  few,  alas,  approved  and  clear ! 

And  what  am  I  ?  my  soul,  awake, 
And  an  impartial  survey  take. 
Does  no  dark  sign,  no  ground  of  fear, 
In  practice  or  in  heart  appear? 

What  image  does  my  spirit  bear? 

Is  Jesus  formed  and  living  there? 

Ah,  do  His  lineaments  divine 

In  thought,  and  word,  and  action  shine? 

Searcher  of  hearts,  O  search  me  still ; 
The  secrets  of  my  soul  reveal ; 
My  fears  remove ;  let  me  appear 
To  God  and  my  own  conscience  clear ! 


SERMON  X. 


THE  CONVERSION  OFTHE  ETHIOPIAN  EUNUCH. 

Acts  viii.  35-39. 


Ads  Tiii.  S5~39-  Then  Philip  opened  his  mouth,  and  began 
at  tie  same  Scripttire  and  preached  tmto  him  Jesus. 

And  as  ihev  -n-ent  on  tiieir  way  thev  came  unto  a  certain 
water :  and  the  eunuch  said,  See,  here  is  vrater ;  what  doth 
hinder  me  to  be  baptized  ? 

And  Philip  said.  If  thon  believest  with  all  thy  heart,  thou 
mayest.  And  he  answered  and  said,  I  believe  that  Jesus  Christ 
is  the  Son  of  God. 

And  he  commanded  the  chariot  to  stand  still :  and  they  went 
down  both  into  the  water,  both  Philip  and  the  eunuch  :  and  he 
baptized  him And  he  went  on  his  way  rejoicing. 


SERMON   X. 

The  young  Church  had  just  received  her  first 
baptism  of  blood.  Peter,  who  only  a  few  weeks  ago 
had  shamefully  backed  down  and  denied  his  Lord 
because  of  the  finger-point  and  sneer  of  a  Jewish 
maiden,  had  now  bravely  suffered  imprisonment 
and  scourging,  rather  than  cease  to  teach  and  to 
preach  Jesus  Christ.  John,  who  had  claimed  that 
he  was  able  to  drink  of  his  Master's  cup,  and  be 
baptized  with  His  baptism,  not  knowing  what  it 
meant,  had  shared  with  Peter  in  suffering  impris- 
onment and  the  scourge.  They  had  departed^r^w 
the  presence  of  the  council^  rejoicing  that  tJiey  were 
counted  worthy  to  suffer  shame  for  His  name. 

Stephen,  the  first  Christian  martyr,  had  died  a 
cruel  death,  for  the  testimony  of  Jesus.  And  now 
the  persecution  had  become  general.  A  deter- 
mined effort  was  made  by  those  who  had  crucified 
the  Lord  to  violently  destroy  His  followers,  and 
blot  out  that  new  way  which  they  called  heresy. 

Then  already,  as  ever  after,  "the  blood  of  the 
martyrs  was  the  seed  of  the  Church. ' '  The  Church 
multiplied  rapidly  in  Jerusalem.  The  disciples 
8  (153) 


154  NEW  TESTAMENT  CONVERSIONS. 

also  were  forcibly  scattered  abroad  in  the  regions 
round  about.  Wherever  they  went,  they  preached 
that  same  Jesus. 

Philip,  one  of  the  seven  deacons,  who,  like 
Stephen,  was  also  an  evangelist  or  public  teacher, 
authorized  and  commissioned  by  the  Church  to 
preach  the  Word,  had  gone  to  the  city  of  Samaria. 
There  he  had  preached  the  Word  with  signal  suc- 
cess, and  multitudes  were  gathered  into  the  Church. 

True,  the  Church  had  already  found  that  the 
Gospel  net  would  gather  in  fishes,  both  bad  and 
good^  and  that  while  they  were  sowing  the  seeds 
of  the  kingdom^  an  enemy  was  sowing  tares^  even 
among  the  good  wheat.  At  Jerusalem  Ananias  and 
Sapphira  had  come  in  and  had  been  excommuni- 
cated from  above.  At  Samaria  also,  Simon  the 
sorcerer  had  been  added,  on  a  false  and  hypocritical 
profession. 

While  Philip  was  doing  a  great  work  in  Samaria, 
the  lyord  called  him  away  from  that  seemingly  im- 
portant work,  and  directed  him  to  go  upon  a  lonely 
road  in  a  desert  country.  Philip  knew  neither  the 
destination  nor  object  of  his  mission,  yet  he  was 
not  disobedient  to  the  heavenly  vision,  but  followed, 
not  knowing  whither  he  went, 

Philip  soon  found  that  he  was  sent   to  preach 


THE  ETHIOPIAN   EUNUCH.  1 55 

to  an  audience  of  one  person.  Quite  a  change 
from  the  multitudes  who  crowded  to  hear  him 
in  Samaria!  j\Iost  of  us  would  have  said  it  was 
a  serious  mistake.  But  the  Lord's  ways  are  not 
our  ways.  He  has  a  care  for  the  individual. 
He  sends  His  messengers  after  one  soul.  The 
ninety  and  nine  must  be  left  for  a  time,  that  the 
single  wanderer  may  besought  and  found.  Would 
that  all  Gospel  ministers  and  indeed  all  Christian 
priests  or  believers  would  recognize  the  opportuni- 
ties and  missions  He  gives  them  to  preach  Jesus  to 
the  individual !  Then  would  the  masses  soon  be 
reached. 

Let  us  look  at  that  individual  for  whom  Philip 
must  give  up  his  great  work  in  Samaria. 

We  find  that  as  to  race  he  was  one  of  the  de- 
spised of  the  earth.  He  was  not  of  the  chosen 
race,  but  by  birth  a  Gentile.  To  him,  therefore, 
did  not  pertain  that  birthright  in  the  covenant  and 
promises  and  oracles  of  God. 

Worse  than  that,  among  the  Gentiles  he  belonged 
to  the  most  despised  people.  He  was  a  descendant 
of  the  accursed  Ham,  an  African  from  Ethiopia,  a 
negro. 

As  to  position^  we  do  indeed  find  him  among 
the  great  ones  of  the  earth.     He  was  treasurer  of  a 


156  NEW  TESTAMENT  CONVERSIONS. 

great  kingdom.  He  held  the  purse-strings  of  an 
empire,  and  had  the  dispensing  of  its  silver  and 
gold.  In  the  eyes  of  men,  his  office  would  make 
him  great  and  honored,  in  spite  of  his  race.  We 
will  now  consider  the  conversion  of  this  Ethiopian. 

As  we  find  him  already,  to  some  extent,  under 
the  divine  guidance,  we  naturally  inquire  first  : 
What  had  the  Grace  that  bringeth  salvation  already 
done  for  him? 

We  find  that  it  had  brought  to  him  a  knowledge 
of  the  true  God.  As  we  find  him,  he  is  not,  like 
most  of  his  countrymen,  an  idolater.  He  has 
learned  to  regard  Jehovah,  the  God  of  Israel,  as 
the  only  true  God.  This  knowledge  had  probably 
been  brought  to  him  by  some  of  the  Jews,  of  whom 
there  was  quite  a  colony  in  Ethiopia  at  that  time. 

In  accepting  Israel's  God  as  the  only  true  Lord 
of  Heaven  and  earth,  he  had  to  submit,  as  a  matter 
of  course,  to  the  rite  of  circumcision.  This  made 
him  a  proselyte,  and  entitled  him  to  a  right  to  par- 
ticipate in  the  worship  of  the  temple  at  Jerusalem. 

We,  therefore,  find  him  an  attendant  of  the  great 
Feasts.  We  meet  him  on  the  way  returning  from 
Jerusalem,  whither  he  had  gone  to  worship.  He 
had  made  the  long  journey  from  his  own  land  in 
order  to  participate  in  the  solemnities  and  festivities 
of  Pentecost. 


THE   ETHIOPIAN   EUNUCH.  1 57 

He  had  tarried  in  Jerusalem  for  several  weeks 
after  the  Feast,  and  is  now  leisurely  returning 
home.  The  fact  that  he  was  permitted  to  thus 
absent  himself  for  so  long  a  time,  shows  that  he 
had  the  j^erfect  confidence  of  his  queen  and  her 
advisers.  We,  therefore,  infer  that  he  was,  what. 
Nathaniel  was  before  he  found  Jesus,  ^^An  Israelite 
ill  whom  there  ivas  no  guile.'''' 

It  was  now  only  about  two  months  since  the  last 
eventful  Passover.  The  memory  of  the  tragic 
scenes  of  the  crucifixion,  and  the  stories  of  the 
resurrection,  were  still  fresh  in  people's  minds.  The 
whole  city  had  again  been  moved  by  the  exciting 
scenes  of  Pentecost.  Thousands  of  followers  and 
believers  had  been  added  to  the  young  Church.  So 
confident  and  steadfast  was  the  faith  of  these  new 
converts  that  neither  the  dungeon,  nor  the  whip- 
ping post,  nor  the  prospect  of  death  by  stoning, 
could  shake  it  or  prevent  its  confession  and  promul- 
gation. 

All  this  the  Ethiopian  must  have  seen  and  heard 
at  Jerusalem.  In  a  devout  and  honest  heart  like 
his,  all  this  would  certainly  awaken  inquiries  and 
longings  for  more  light.  This  drove  him  to  the 
Scriptures,  and  made  him  search  anew  the  oracles 
of  God.     And  thus  we  find  that  he  was  under  the 


158  NEW  TESTAMENT  CONVERSIONS. 

divine  tuition.  He  was  partially  enlightened.  He 
needed  and  was  seeking  further  light.  Prevenient 
Grace,  the  Grace  that  goes  before  and  prepares  the 
way  for  conversion,  was  at  work  in  him. 

We  notice  secondly  how  he  was  brought  to  the 
full  light  and  life. 

We  find  him  reading  the  Scriptures.  When  he 
wanted  more  light  and  longed  for  more  satisfaction, 
he  did  not  try  to  satisfy  himself  by  an  effort  of 
reason.  He  did  not  try  to  solve  his  perplexities 
with  his  own  understanding.  Neither  did  he  say 
that  he  would  wait  until  his  return  home,  and  then 
he  would  ask  the  philosophers  and  wise  men  of  his 
own  nation.  It  was  not  with  any  human  light  that 
he  sought  to  dispel  the  darkness  of  his  mind,  nor 
with  any  earthly  good  that  he  endeavored  to  satisfy 
the  longings  of  his  heart.  He  went  directly  to  the 
Word  of  God,  believing  that  the  eiitrance  of  that 
Word  giveth  light,  that  it  is  a  lamp  tmto  the  feet 
and  a  light  unto  one' s  path.  Looking  up  to  the 
Author  of  that  Word,  his  heart  said,  ' '  In  thy  light 
shall  we  see  light.'''' 

He  wanted  the  light  of  life.  He  went  to  the 
fountain  of  life.  He  found  it  in  the  book  of  life. 
These  wonderful  words  of  life  were  unto  him  spirit 
and  life.     Thus  do  we  find  this  enquirer  searchiitg 


THE   ETHIOPIAN   EUNUCH.  159 

the  Scriptures  that  in  tliem  he  might  Jlnd  that  eter- 
nal life  which  he  craved. 

We  get  a  better  idea  of  his  eagerness  and  earnest- 
ness when  we  remember  how  inconvenient  it  was 
to  read  at  that  time.  He  was  riding  over  a  desert 
road,  under  the  heat  and  glare  of  a  Syrian  sun. 
He  was  not  riding  in  a  palace  car,  but  jolted  along 
in  one  of  the  rude  chariots  of  those  days.  Books 
and  printing  were  not  known.  There  were  none 
of  those  handy  editions  of  the  Bible,  nor  vest- 
pocket  Testaments.  This  man  had  to  carry  with 
him  a  heavy  scroll  of  parchment,  and  this  un- 
wieldy roll  of  finely  written  manuscript  he  was 
trying  to  read  as  the  chariot  rumbled  along.  Truly 
he  was  interested.  He  could  say,  ^'' I  have  desired 
the  words  of  thy  mouth  more  than  my  necessary 
food.''"'  ''''More  to  be  desired  are  they  than  gold ; 
yea^  tJian  much  fine  gold ;  sweeter  also  than  honey 
and  the  honey-comby  He  was  seeking  and  finding 
light  and  life  in  the  Word  of  God. 

Further,  we  find  this  man  gladly  availing  him- 
self of  the  assistance  of  an  evangelist.  He  did  not 
belong  to  the  class  of  those  who  are  so  ivise  in 
their  own  conceits  that  they  imagine  that  they 
neither  need  nor  could  get  assistance  from  others. 
Such  are  those  people  who  say  they  need  no  minis- 


l6o  NEW  TESTAMENT   COXA'ERSIOXS. 

ters  of  the  Gospel.  They  need  not  go  to  Church. 
They  can  just  as  well,  or  far  better,  read  the  Bible 
for  themselves.  They  do  not  stop  to  inquire  who 
instituted  the  office  of  the  ministr}-.  They  do  not 
try  to  inform  themselves  as  to  its  origin,  nature, 
necessity.  Strange,  that  with  all  their  professed 
Bible  reading  and  Bible  reverence,  they  have  not 
found  the  ministr}'  in  it!  Strange,  indeed,  that 
they  could  read  the  Bible  without  discovering  that 
it  is  God's  own  ordainment  that  there  should  ever 
be  these  living  teachers  and  preachers,  because 
man  needs  the  help  of  his  fellow-man:  and  that 
the  Lord,  the  great  Head  of  the  Church,  has  so  ar- 
ranged and  ordered  that  His  saving  Grace,  coming 
through  the  Word,  should  be  brought  to  man  by 
man.  It  is  certainly  clearly  taught  that  God  or- 
dained the  Old  Testament  priesthood,  and  that 
Christ  appointed  the  New  Testament  ministry, 
and  that,  through  the  Church,  which  is  His  bride, 
He  still  calls  and  sends  these  preachers  and  dispen- 
sers of  His  written  and  sacramental  Word. 

So  the  eunuch  believed.  He  humbly  confessed 
that  he  could  not  understand  all  he  read  without 
some  one  to  assist  him.  Finding  one  whom  he  be- 
lieved to  be  a  regular  and  true  expounder  of  that 
Word,  he  appeals  to  him  for  instruction  and  light. 


THE  ETHIOPIAN   EUNUCH.  l6l 

And  Philip  opened  his  mouth  and  began  at  the 
same  Scripture  and  preached  unto  hwi  Jesus.  And 
thus  did  the  living  ministry  expound  and  apply  to 
him  the  living  Word.     The  eunuch  was  preached 

to. 

It  is  important  to  notice  also  the  character  of  the 
preaching.  It  was  true  Gospel  preaching.  Not 
every-one  who  calls  himself  a  minister  or  an  evan- 
gelist is  such  indeed  and  in  truth.  There  always 
have  hQ:Q.n  false  prophets,  blind  leaders,  and  wolves 
in  sheep's  clothing.  They  have  come  without  be- 
ing called  of  the  Lord,  they  run  without  being 
sent. 

Not  all  that  is  called  Gospel  preaching  is  such  in 
reality.  There  be  many  who  preach  another  gos- 
pel, which  is  not  another,  i.  e.,  it  is  no  gospel  at. 
all.  Oh  how  mdiXiy preach  themselves  /  They  stand 
before  a  congregation  of  poor,  lost,  and  ruined  sin- 
ners. Week  after  week  they  appear  before  them  to 
display  their  own  wisdom,  to  parade  their  own 
abilities,  to  magnify  their  own  persons!  How  many 
-pr&dich.  as  pleasing  men  !  Their  constant  effort  is 
to  entertain,  to  flatter,  to  gratify  the  tastes  and  de- 
sires of  the  natural  man!  How  much  of  the 
preaching  of  the  present  day  is  a  magnifying  of 
the  innate  powers  and  capabilities  of  man.  An 
8* 


l63  NEW  TESTAMENT  CONVERSIONS. 

appeal  to  the  pride  ami  dignity  of  manhood,  an 
effort  to  get  man  to  lay  aside  vice  Ix'caiisc  it  is  ////- 
becoming  to  siuJi  a  noble  and  gifted  creature. 
Man's  manhood  is  io  shame  him  ont  of  sin.  Man's 
pride  is  to  make  him  desire  to  be  a  son  of  God. 
Man's  noble  endowments  are  to  be  so  developed  that 
bj'  his  Occn  strength  and  reason  he  sha//  tie  as  God  I 

It  was  well  for  the  einuich  that  he  did  not  meet 
some  popnlar  nineteenth-century  preacher  or  evan- 
gelist! 

Philip  preached  nnto  him  Jesns.  In  this  he 
showed  himself  to  be  a  true  evangelist.  This  is 
the  substance  of  all  true  Gospel  preaching.  One 
greater  than  Philip  had  said,  when  urging  the 
searching  of  the  Scriptures,  ^\for  they  are  they  that 
testify  of  me.''''  When  preaching  to  a  congregation 
of  two,  on  the  way  to  Emniaus,  He  began  "  with 
Moses  and  all  the  prophets.,  and  expounded  unto 
them  in  all  the  Scriptures  the  things  concerning 
Himself''  fesus  was  the  burden  of  every  Old 
Testament  prayer,  the  hope  of  every  patriarch 
and  saint,  the  inspiration  of  every  psalm,  the 
aim  of  every  sacrifice,  the  goal  of  every  prophecy. 
Jesus  is  the  very  heart  and  life  of  the  whole  New 
Testament.  Jesus  was  the  great  central  theme,  the 
sum  and  substance  of  all  apostolic  preaching  and 


TIfK   KTHIOI'IAN    RUNUCII.  163 

writiii;^.  Pliilip  had  a  good  text.  He  liad  a  large 
subject.  lie  liad  a  tlienic  that  cannot  be  exhausterl 
in  one  sermon,  nor  in  tlie  sermons  of  one  lifetime, 
nor  of  all  ages.  It  will  take  eternity  to  know  and 
tell  it  all! 

In  preaching  Jesus  to  this  Ethiopian,  Philip 
would  naturally  teach  him  the  Bible  doctrine  of 
His  person  and  His  two-fold  nature.  He  would 
unfold  to  him  the  great  work  or  mission  of  Jesus, 
His  life  of  obedience,  the  positive  righteousness 
thereby  wrought  out — not  for  Himself,  for  He 
needed  it  not,  but  for  those  who  were  destitute  of 
a  righteousness  that  could  stand  before  God.  He 
would  instruct  him  of  the  passive  or  sufTering 
obedience  of  Jesus,  even  His  obedience  unlo  dcalh^ 
or  His  atonement. 

Then  he  could  not  help  explaining  further  what 
made  all  this  great  work  of  the  God-man  necessary. 
He  would  have  to  speak  of  sin^  of  its  damnable 
nature  and  the  necessity  of  punishment,  and  how 
that  the  work  of  Jesus  was  an  expiation  for  man's 
sin,  and  that  in  it  all  He  was  the  sinner's  substi- 
tute. He  would  show  that  thus  justice  was  satis- 
fied, and  redemption  ruul  salvation  purchased  for 
every  sinner. 

Again,  it  would  be  necessary  to  teach  the  Ethio- 


164  NEW  TESTAMENT  CONVERSIONS. 

pian  liow  this /esi^s  had  sent  the  Holy  Spirit^  and 
how  that  Spirit  applies  and  brings  home  to  the  in- 
dividual heart  and  life  that  redemption.  He  would 
show  how  that  Spirit  comes  and  operates  through 
the  Word  and  Sacraments,  and  how  that  Jesus  had 
founded  a  Church  in  and  by  which  the  Word 
was  to  be  preached  and  the  two  sacraments,  Bap- 
tism and  the  Lord's  Supper,  administered.  Thus 
would  it  be  necessary  for  Philip  in  preaching  Jesus 
to  expound  the  way  of  salvation  through  Him,  and 
the  application  of  salvation,  by  His  Spirit,  through 
His  Word  and  Sacraments. 

That  Philip  did  this  becomes  quite  evident  from 
the  eunuch's  request  to  be  baptized.  Whether  the 
verse  containing  Philip's  question  and  the  Ethio- 
pian's answer  be  genuine  or  not,  even  without  it 
we  find  the  clearest  evidence  of  his  faith;  It  was 
indeed  because  he  believed  so  heartily  in  this  Jesus 
Christ,  that  he  believed  confidently  in  all  the  words 
and  institutions  of  Jesus.  Such  faith  in  Christ 
cannot  make  light  of  any  of  Christ's  ordinances. 
Whether  reason  can  see  anything  in  the  ordi- 
nance or  not,  faith  believes  that  everything  that 
comes  from  the  hands  of  the  Blessed  One  must, 
on  that  account^  have  blessing  in  it.  Because  the 
eunuch  believed  in  Christ,  therefore  he  believed  in 


THE   ETHIOPIAN    EUNUCH.  165 

Christ's  baptism  and  wanted  it  applied  to  himself. 
It  was  not  hard  for  him  to  believe  "  in  one  baptism 
for  the  remission  of  sins,"  and  that  "  it  worketh 
forgiveness  of  sins,  delivers  from  death  and  the 
devil,  and  confers  everlasting  life  and  salvation  on 
all  who  believe  as  the  Word  and  promise  of  God 
declare."  Believing  in  Christ,  it  was  not  hard  to 
believe  all  that  His  Word  says  of  the  blessings  and 
benefits  of  His  sacrament.  He  wanted  to  be  and 
was  baptized.  He  wanted  to  have  a  place  in 
Christ's  Church. 

Who  will  doubt  his  conversion  ?  While  there  is 
not  much  said  of  his  penitence  or  sorrow  for  sin, 
this  is  natural,  because,  as  we  saw  above,  he  had 
been  for  a  Ions:  time  under  the  divine  tuition.  His 
faith,  however,  shines  out  brightly  and  clearly. 
Therefore,  ' '  being  justified  by  faith^  he  had  peace 
with  God^  through  our  Lord  Jesus  Christ.'*'' 

He  went  on  his  way  rejoicing.  He  had  found 
the  pearl  of  great  price  ^  in  comparison  to  wliich 
the  treasures  of  Ethiopia  were  as  nothing.  He  had 
found  the  forgiveness  of  sin  and  adoption  into  the 
family  of  God.  He- had  found  Christ  in  the  Scrip- 
tures, and  thus  had  the  key  to  their  interpretation. 

This  converted  Ethiopian  on  his  return  to  his 
native  land  would  naturally  tell  ivhat  the  Lord  had 


1 66  NEW  TEST A:\rEXT  CONVERSIONS. 

do7ie  for  his  soul.  He  would  naturally  want  to 
teach  transgressors  GocV  s  ways,  that  sinners  viigJii 
be  converted  luito  Him. 

Whether  the  early  traditions  that  tell  us  of  his 
turning  evangelist  and  missionating  among  his 
countrymen  are  true  or  not,  whether  he  did  baptize 
his  queen  and  establish  the  Church  in  that  land  or 
not,  we  cannot  positively  affirm. 

But  we  do  know  that  -in  the  early  centuries  the 
Church  seemed  to'  find  a  ready  footing  and  great 
prosperity  in  the  north  of  Africa.  And  between 
that  fact  and  the  Ethiopian  eunuch's  conversion 
there  may  be  a  closer  connection  than  we  can 
trace.  And  if  this  be  so,  we  need  no  longer  wonder 
why  the  Lord  directed  Philip  to  leave  his  work  in 
Samaria,  to  follow  and  evangelize  one  soul. 

Who  knows  what  results  may  follow  the  preach- 
ing of  Jesus  to  a  fellow-traveler,  a  companion,  a 
neighbor,  a  fellow-workman,  or  an  individual  any- 
where ? 

Let  every  Gospel  minister  and  every  member  of 
the  priesthood  of  believers  do  the  work  of  an  evan- 
gelist by  preaching  Jesus  to  the  individual,  when- 
ever God  gives  the  opportunity. 


SERMON  XI. 


THE  CONVERSION  OF  PAUL 

Acts  ix.  1-9,  and  17,  18. 


Acts  ix.  r-g,  and  //,  iS.  And  Saul  yet  breathing  out  threat- 
enings  and  slaughter  against  the  disciples  of  the  Lord,  went 
unto  the  high  priest, 

And  desired  of  him  letters  to  Damascus  to  the  synagogues, 
that  if  he  found  any  of  this  way,  whether  they  were  men  or 
women,  he  might  bring  them  bound  unto  Jerusalem. 

And  as  he  journeyed,  he  came  near  Damascus  :  and  suddenly 
there  shined  round  about  him  alight  from  heaven. 

And  he  fell  to  the  earth,  and  heard  a  voice  saying  unto  him : 
Saul,  Saul,  why  persecutest  thou  me  ? 

And  he  said.  Who  art  thou.  Lord  ?  And  the  Lord  said,  I  am 
Jesus  whom  thou  persecutest ;  it  is  hard  for  thee  to  kick  against 
the  pricks. 

And  he,  trembling  and  astonished,  said :  Lord,  what  wilt 
thou  have  me  to  do  ?  And  the  Lord  said  unto  him  :  Arise  and 
go  into  the  city,  and  it  shall  be  told  thee  what  thou  must  do. 

And  the  men  which  journeyed  with  him  stood  speechless, 
hearing  a  voice,  but  seeing  no  man. 

And  Saul  arose  from  the  earth ;  and  when  his  eyes  were 
opened,  he  saw  no  man  :  but  they  led  him  by  the  hand,  and 
brought  him  into  Damascus. 

And  he  was  three  days  without  sight,  and  neither  did  eat  nor 
drink  ..... 

And  Ananias  went  his  way,  and  entered  into  the  house  ;  and 
putting  his  hands  on  him  said :  Brother  Saul,  the  Lord,  even 
Jesus,  that  appeared  unto  thee  in  the  way  as  thou  camest,  hath 
sent  me,  that  thou  mightest  receive  thy  sight,  and  be  filled 
w'ith  the  Holy  Ghost. 

And  immediately  there  feijl  from  his  eyes  as  it  had  been 
scales  :  and  he  received  sight  forthwith,  and  arose  and  was 
baptized. 

(Compare  chapter  xxii.  6-17,  and  xxvi.   13-16.) 


SERMON   XL 

It  has  been  claimed  tliat  since  the  coming  of 
Christ  and  the  inauguration  of  the  New  Testament 
dispensation  there  has  not  been  an  individual  con- 
version of  such  transcendant  importance  to  the 
Church  of  Jesus  Christ  as  the  conversion  of  the 
apostle  Paul.  This  claim  may  at  first  thought 
seem  extravagant,  but  the  more  we  study  the  life 
and  character  and  achievements  of  that  greatest  of 
the  apostles,  the  more  are  we  inclined  to  accept  the 
claim  as  sober  truth. 

Consider  for  a  moment  what  kind  of  a  man  he 
was.  He  was  endowed  with  one  of  the  greatest 
and  brightest  of  intellects.  He  had  the  advantage 
of  a  thorough  and  liberal  education.  He  had  been 
trained  by  the  most  reputable  teachers,  in  the  best 
of  schools.  His  learning  covered  not  only  all  the 
wisdom  of  the  Hebrews,  but  it  embraced  also  a 
thorough  knowledge  of  the  histories,  the  philoso- 
phies, the  literature,  and  the  mythology  of  the  an- 
cients of  renown.  As  a  scholar  he  probably  had 
few  peers  and  no  superiors  among  his  contempor- 
aries. 

(169) 


170  NEW  TESTAMENT  CONVERSIONS. 

He  was  a  clear  tliiuker,  a  strong  reasoner,  a 
powerful  logician.  Along  with  his  bright  intellect, 
he  was  possessed  of  a  strong  will,  an  indomitable 
purpose,  a  dauntless  courage.  With  all  this  he  had 
a  scrupulous  conscience  and  a  tender  heart. 

Think  of  his  former  life  and  religious  training. 
Brought  up  from  childhood  according  to  the  tenets 
of  ' '  the  straitest  sect  of  the  Jews^  a  Hebrew  of  the 
Hebrews^  a  Pharisee  of  the  Pharisees^  as  touching 
the  law  blameless.'''' 

With  all  the  ardor  and  enthusiasm  of  his  young 
nature,  he  had  embraced  what  his  famous  teachers 
taught  him  as  the  old  orthodox  faith  of  the  cove- 
nant people.  He  had  become  a  thorough  legalist 
and  a  firm  believer  in  the  coming  of  a  world-con- 
quering Messiah.  All  his  associations,  training 
and  education  had  thus  confirmed  him  more  and 
more  in  what  he  considered  as  the  faith  of  the 
fathers. 

Now  this  educated  and  zealous  man  is  brought 
face  to  face  with  the  new  way.  He  hears  the 
preaching  of  the  Galilean  fishermen.  They  teach 
that  one  Jesus  of  Nazareth,  a  son  of  an  obscure 
carpenter,  whose  pretensions  had  been  rejected  and 
condemned  by  chief  priests,  elders,  scribes  and 
Pharisees,  who  had  died  the  disgraceful  death  of 


CONVERSION   OF   PAUL.  I/I 

a  malefactor,  hanged  between  two  thieves — that  this 
was  the  Messiah,  the  Redeemer  of  the  world!  He 
is  told  that  his  own  righteousness,  which  is  of  the 
law,  and  in  which  he  prides  himself  so  much,  can- 
not save  him;  that  he  must  repent  as  a  poor  sinner, 
and  put  his  whole  trust  in  the  crucified  Messiah. 

No  wonder  that  his  whole  being  rises  up  in  re- 
volt at  such  doctrines  and  their  teachers.  He  sees 
that  the  acceptance  of  this  new  faith  means  the 
overthrow  of  that  colossal  system  of  legalism  and 
Messianic  hope  built  up  during  centuries  by  Tal- 
mudists.  Rabbis,  Scribes  and  Pharisees.  He 
eagerly  disputes  in  the  synagogues  with  Stephen 
and  the  other  defenders  of  the  new  faith.  He 
makes  up  his  mind  that  this  awful,  revolutionizing 
heresy,  this  treason  to  Jehovah's  covenant,  must  be 
exterminated  root  and  branch.  He  becomes  a 
leader  in  the  persecution,  takes  part  in  the  murder 
of  Stephen,  gives  his  voice  or  vote  in  the  council 
against  every  believer  in  Jesus,  lays  hold  of  men 
and  women,  endeavors  to  compel  them  to  blas- 
pheme, and  puts  to  death  all  persistent  disciples. 
When  through  with  his  searching  and  torturing  at 
Jerusalem,  he  starts  to  Damascus  to  carry  on  the 
same  cruel  work  there.  But  before  he  gets  there 
he  becomes  a  believer  in  Jesus  of  Nazareth.     He 


172  NEW   TESTAMENT   CONVERSIONS. 

afterwards  becomes  the  greatest  of  all  the  apostles, 
the  most  intrepid  and  invincible  defender  of  the 
faith  he  once  persecuted.  Himself  becomes  the 
most  persecuted  man  living.  He  endures  such 
hardships,  privations,  tortures  and  torments,  that 
his  whole  after  life  is  a  continuous  martyrdom 
till  it  ends  in  a  martyr's  death.  Surely  such  a 
man,  f>'oin  such  a  life,  to  such  a  life,  could  not  have 
been  converted  by  a  delusion,  to  a  delusion!  No, 
to  believe  that  would  require  far  more  credulity 
than  to  believe  that  he  was  converted  by  Him  who 
is  the  Truth,  to  His  own  truth. 

It  is  his  conversion  that  we  now  desire  to  exam- 
ine. Many  false  and  dangerous  errors  have  been 
drawn  from  and  connected  with  this  conversion. 
May  the  Spirit  of  truth  lead  us  to  know  and  accept 
His  own  truth. 

We  inquire  yfri-/.-  What  likely  prepared  the  way 
for  that  conversion  ? 

Whether  Paul  had  ever  been  in  Jerusalem  when 
Jesus  was  in  that  city,  we  know  not.  But  we  do 
know  that  he  was  there  a  few  years  after  the  cruci- 
fixion, when  the  young  Church  was  making  such 
progress  as  to  alarm  the  custodians  and  defenders 
of  the  old  faith.  He  was  there  when  there  was 
that  general  interest  and  commotion  caused  by  the 


CONVERSION   OF   PAUL.  173 

preaching  of  the  apostles  and  deacons.  Paul  must 
have  heard  some  of  that  preaching  and  public 
reasoning  in  the  synagogues. 

It  is  also  more  than  likely  that  he  was  one  of 
those  Cilicians  who  openly  disputed  or  debated  with 
the  fiery  and  convincing  vStephen.  Unable  to  7'e- 
sist  the  wisdom  and  the  spirit  by  which  he  spoke^ 
they  became  wroth,  and  determined  on  physical, 
force  to  put  down  the  heresy.  Paul,  in  the  mean- 
time, must  have  pondered  and  studied  these  new 
and  wonderful  truths.  From  the  sincere  and  in- 
quiring nature  of  the  man,  we  believe  that  these 
wonderful  words  of  life  made  him  think,  question, 
and  feel.  As  long  as  he  was  unconvinced,  he  be- 
came the  more  hostile. 

Stephen  was  dragged  before  the  council,  and 
made  that  masterly  defense  of  his.  Paul  heard 
every  word.  It  could  not  fail  of  an  impression. 
It  has  been  noticed  how  that,  on  more  than  one 
occasion,  in  his  reasoning  with  the  Jews,  in  later 
years,  he  adopted  the  same  line  of  argument  that 
Stephen  used.  He  never  lost  that  speech.  No 
doubt  it  carried  prevenient  or  preparatory  Grace. 

Then,  again,  as  Paul  listened  to  Stephen's  con- 
vincing words,  he  also  saiv  his  face  as  it  had  been 
the  face  of  an  angel.     With  that  look,  reflecting 


174  NEW  TESTAMENT  CONVERSIONS. 

the  glory  of  heaven,  he  claimed,  in  Paul's  hearing: 
'"''  Behold  I  see  the  heavens  opened^  and  the  Son  of 
Man  standing  on  the  right  hand  of  Gody 

Paul  heard  that  prayer  for  the  murderers,  and  that 
peaceful  commitment  of  his  spirit  to  the  Lord  Jesus. 

With  what  feelings  must  not  Paul  have  gone 
from  that  martyrdom !  What  a  tumult  must  have 
raged  in  his  breast!  What  conflicting  thoughts 
and  emotions  must  have  stirred  within!  But  he  is 
not  yet  convinced.  It  is  no  trifle  for  a  sincere, 
investigating,  well-fortified,  and  perfectly  satisfied 
spirit  to  throw  off"  the  convictions  of  a  lifetime. 
Paul  would  likely  blame  his  rising  questions, 
doubts,  and  strans^e  feelings  on  some  unseen 
tempter.  He  would  try  to  shake  them  off".  He 
would  drown  them  in  redoubled  zeal  for  the  old 
faith.  He  would  be  more  eager  than  ever  to  put 
down  that  new  heresy,  so  subtle  and  dangerous  as 
even  to  threaten  to  unsettle  him!  As  long  as  he 
can  find  heretics,  he  keeps  his  head  and  hands  full 
in  Jerusalem.  By  and  by  he  is  through  there.  He 
cannot  be  idle.  He  must  keep  himself  busy  to 
keep  down  these  troublous  thoughts  and  feelings. 
Armed  with  the  proper  credentials,  he  starts  for 
Damascus,  to  carry  on  the  same  awful,  absorbing 
work  there. 


CONVERSION  OF  PAUL.  175 

But  Damascus  is  over  one  hundred  and  fifty 
miles  away.  It  will  take  almost  a  week  to  make 
the  journey.  The  route  is  over  historic  ground. 
The  scenes  along  the  way  recall  scenes  and  associ- 
ations of  great  interest  to  the  devout  Jew.  Along 
this  way  the  impetuous  and  unsettled  Paul  must 
journey.  He  has  nothing  now  to  absorb  his  en- 
ergy and  attention.  He  is  alone  with  himself.  He 
has  time  to  think.  And  such  a  man  cannot  dream 
away  the  time.  He  must  think.  The  road  would 
remind  him  of  the  covenant  people  and  the  cov- 
enant words.  From  these  his  mind  would  again 
revert  to  the  new  interpretation  of  those  covenant 
deeds  and  words.  Again  and  again  he  would  re- 
call the  wonderful  and  elevating  power  of  those 
new  interpretations.  Again  and  again  the  question 
would  come,  Is  not  the  new  interpretation  more 
consistent  and  more  true  to  the  history  and  spirit 
of  the  covenant  than  the  old?  And  then  again 
would  he  feel  the  tortures  of  doubt  and  the  inde- 
finable longings  after  peace,  and  would  send  up  a 
prayer  to  Abraham's  God  for  light.  And  thus  were 
those  six  quiet  days,  days  of  Grace  and  preparation. 
The  Spirit  of  God  was  working  through  the  Word 
and  preparing  the  way  for  the  Lord.  The  kammer 
was  falling.     The  fire  was  burnincr.     The  lieht  was 


176  NEW  TESTAMENT  CONVERSIONS. 

shining.  The  seed  was  rooting;  and  Paul  was  in 
the  way  to  conversion. 

We  therefore  notice  secondly^  what  brought  that 
conversion  to  pass? 

Paul  and  his  attendants  were  nearing  the  city, 
''^And  suddenly  there  shined  m'oiind  about  Jihn  a 
light  from  heaven^  But  it  was  not  that  light  that 
converted  him — it  was  only  a  symbol  of  another 
light  that  he  needed,  and  that  was  about  to  be 
vouchsafed  unto  him. 

In  that  light  there  appeared  a  form,  and  from 
that  form  there  came  a  voice  saying  unto  hini^  Saul^ 
Saul^  why  persecutest  thoti  me  ?  It  was  Jesus  re- 
vealing Himself  and  making  Himself  known 
through  His  own  Word,  and  this  brought  about 
Paul's  conversion.  t 

Notice  the  manner  of  this  revealing,  of  Himself 
by  Christ.  He  first  calls  him.  He  calls  him  by 
name.  It  is  Christ  coming  first  to  Paul,  and  not 
Paul  first  turning  to  Christ.  It  is  the  shepherd 
seeking  the  sheep,  and  not  the  sheep  the  shepherd. 
Yes,  God  ahvays  comes  first  to  us.  The  first  step 
is  from  heaven  to  earth  after  the  sinner,  and  not 
from  earth  towards  heaven  after  God.  That  call 
is  the  call  of  seeking  Grace.  It  is  the  call  of  yearn- 
ing love.      It   is   a   repetition   of  that  first  call, 


CONVERSION  OF  PAUL.  1 77 

^^Adam^  whei-e  art  thotcf''  It  is  the  call  that 
sounds  so  frequently  in  the  ears  of  all  of  Adam's 
children. 

Notice  further  how  the  Lord  enlightens  Paul. 
He  shows  him  his  sin.  Thou  persecutest  Me. 
This  is  the  awful  character  of  sin.  This  is  its 
damnable  nature.  It  is  opposition  to  Christ.  It 
is  rebellion  against  heaven.  It  is  fighting  against 
God.  This  is  indeed  the  essence  of  all  sin.  Here- 
in lies  its  fearful  guilt.  And  this  is  what  the 
sinner  needs  to  know,  and  to  know  this  he  needs 
the  light  of  God's  Word. 

The  word  of  Christ  shows  Paul  not  only  the 
g^iilt  of  his  sin,  but  also  its  folly.  It  is  a  kicking 
against  the  pricks.  As  the  stubborn  ox  only  hurts 
himself  by  kicking  against  the  sharp  goad  of  the 
driver,  so  the  sinner  is  only  hurting  himself.  This 
is  the  folly  of  all  sin.  Even  when  it  seerhs  to  give 
momentary  satisfaction,  it  really  brings  sores  and 
pains.  It  is  a  kicking  into  the  sharp  goad  of  Satan, 
the  cruel  driver. 

The  lyord  further  shows  Paul  the  fearful  daitger 
of  sin.  As  fighting  against  Jesus,  to  whom  all 
power  is  given  both  in  heaven  and  on  earthy  it  is  a 
hopeless  battle.  The  sinner  must  miserably  fail 
in  the  end.  He  will  be  utterly  Vanquished.  He  is 
9 


178  NEW  TESTAMENT   CONVERSIONS. 

only  provoking  the  wrath  of  the  Lamb^  and  laying 
up  for  himself  wrath  against  the  day  of  wrath. 

Thus  is  Paul  enlightened  by  the  Divine  Word. 
He  is  taught  to  see  and  understand  what  his  sin  is. 
Its  nature,  its  guilt,  its  folly  and  its  danger,  are 
all  shown  him. 

On  the  other  hand,  he  is  taught  to  know  that 
there  is  One  who  loves  him,  who  calls  him,  who  is 
seeking  to  save  him. 

Now  all  this  revelation  of  Christ  is  intended  and 
calculated  to  awaken  in  Paul  true  penitence^  a 
knowledge  of  sin,  a  sense  of  his  guilt,  and  a  long- 
ing for  deliverance.  And  this  is  the  first  part  of 
conversion. 

Christ's  interest  and  call  is  also  intended  and 
suited  to  beget  faith  in  Paul.  It  is  calculated  to 
draw  him  to  that  compassionate  Seeker,  and  to 
enable  him  to  cast  himself  on  His  mercy.  Faith 
is  to  come  by  hearing^  and  Jiearing  by  the  Word  of 
God.     But  faith  is  the  second  part  of  conversion. 

That  such  was  the  result  with  Paul  we  can 
plainly  see  from  his  conduct.  Paul  fell  to  the 
earth;  but  that  fall  was  not  conversion,  it  was  only 
a  symbol  of  that  coming  down  of  his  sinful  pride, 
self-sufficiency  and  self-righteousness. 

We  find  that  the  prostrate  and  humbled    Paul 


CONVERSION   OF  PAUL.  1 79 

first  inquires  for  more  light.  ^^TV7io  art  thoii^ 
Lord?''"'  Paul  has  become  an  inquirer.  He  wants 
to  be  certain  first  of  all  with  whom  he  has  to  do. 
It  is  a  blessed  token  of  a  work  of  Grace  when  the 
sinner  begins  seriously  to  inquire  about  Christ  and 
divine  things,  when  he  goes  to  his  Bible  to  find 
out  who  this  Lord  is  and  what  he  desires  of  him, 
and  what  he  himself  is  over  against  this  Lord. 
Paul  further  asks:  ^''IVhat  zvilt  thou  have  me  to 
dof''     It  is  a  further  cry  for  light  and  instruction. 

But  this  question  is  also  more  than  that.  It  con- 
tains an  acknowledgment  of  sin.  What  wilt  iJiou 
have  me  to  do?  As  much  as  to  say  :  "  I  have  been 
following  my  own  way.  I  have  been  doing  my  own 
works.  My  way,  I  now  see,  is  all  wrong.  It  is  the 
tuay  of  Cain.,  the  way  of  death.  My  works  have 
been  works  of  darkness  and  crime  against  my 
Lord.  I  acknowledge  my  transgression.  I  hate 
my  sin.  I  abhor  myself  "  Such  we  believe  were 
the  penitent  feelings  of  the  contrite  heart  of  Paul. 

This  question  of  Paul  also  contains  a  confession 
of  faith  in  Christ.  "I  acknowledge  Thee  to  be  my 
Lord.,  only  do  Tho7c  direct;  I  will  trust  Thee;  I  will 
put  myself  in  Thy  hands;  I  will  follow  Thee.  No 
longer  will  I  consult  my  own  inclination  or  my 
own  reason.     Thou    shalt   direct  and    Thou   wilt 


l8o  NEW  TESTAMENT  CONVERSIONS. 

save."  And  thus  the  turning  point  was  made. 
Paul  was  a  converted  man.  But  he  was  by  no 
means  a  full-grown  man  in  Christ  Jesus.  He  was 
but  just  a  babe  in  Christ — a  feeble  beginner  of 
the  Christian  life.     We  notice,  therefore,  thirdly: 

The  further  leadings  of  Divine  Grace  towards 
the  fuller  light  of  assurance  and  the  higher  calling 
of  apostleship. 

Paul  was  blind.  That  light  above  the  noon-day 
brightness  of  the  Syrian  sun  had  temporarily 
darkened  his  eyes.  He  was  led  by  the  hand  into 
the  city.  For  three  days  he  sat  in  the  gloom  and 
saw  no  man.  This  doubtless  was  to  further  teach 
him  how  dark  his  way  had  been  without  the  Light 
of  the  woidd.  During  these  days  he  did  neither  eat 
nor  drink.  He  was  as  one  who  had  been  hanging 
over  a  fearful  gulf,  and  was  suddenly  rescued  by  a 
heavenly  hand.  He  could  not  help  but  review  the 
past,  reflect  on  his  awful  course,  lament  over  his 
fearful  sins,  shudder  at  the  frightful  danger  that  he 
had  been  inviting,  and  cry  again  and  again  for 
mercy,  even  after  he  had  obtained  mercy.  The 
only  account  we  have  of  the  occupation  of  these 
momentous  days  is,  ' '  behold,  he  prayeth. ' '  What 
pleading  and  wrestling  that  must  have  been! 
Then  he  was  further  instructed  by  one  com  mis- 


CONVERSION   OF   PAUL.  l8l 

sioned  to  be  a  spiritual  guide.  From  Ananias  he 
learned  the  way  of  God  more  plainly.  He  brought 
to  that  broken  and  contrite  heart  the  heavenly 
light,  and  life,  and  comfort  of  the  divine  Word. 
As  a  new-born  babe  he  desired  and  received  the 
sincere  milk  of  the  Word^  that  he  might  grow 
thereby,  Ananias  also  instructed  him  to  receive 
the  Sacramental  Word,  that  ^''washing  of  regener- 
ation and  reyiewing  of  the  Holy  Ghost^''''  which 
''''doth  also  now  save  z^^. "  ''''And  now  why  tarries t 
thou  ?  Arise^  and  be  baptized,,  and  wash  away  thy 
sins,,  calling  on  the  name  of  the  Lord.'''' 

And  thus,  by  the  Word,  as  he  had  studied  it  be- 
fore his  conversion,  as  he  had  heard  it  from 
Stephen,  as  he  heard  it  from  Christ  and  from 
Ananias,  as  he  received  it  in  connection  with  the 
baptismal  water,  was  Paul  led  out  into  the  blessed 
light  of  acceptance,  into  the  family  of  the  re- 
deemed, and  the  full  assurance  of  forgiveness  and 
inheritance  among  the  saints  in  light. 

It  is  a  general  opinion  that  Paul  at  once,  as  soon 
as  he  was  baptized,  entered  upon  his  public  minis- 
try. If  we  had  no  other  account  of  his  conversion 
and  mission  than  the  Acts  of  the  Apostles,  then 
such  would  be  our  natural  conviction.  But  Paul 
gives  us  many  details  in  his  letters,  which  are  not 


1 83  NEW  TESTAMENT  CONVERSIONS. 

mentioned  in  the  Acts.  In  the  first  chapter  of 
Q^latians,  after  speaking  of  his  former  life  and 
how  it  pleased  God  to  call  him  and  reveal  His  Son 
in  him,  he  says,  ^''Immediately  I  conferred  not  with 
fiesh  and  blood;  neither  we7it  I  up  to  Jerusalem  to 
them  which  were  apostles  before  me ;  but  I  went  into 
Arabia^  and  returned  again  to  Damascus. ' ' 

Comparing  this  statement  with  the  account  in 
Acts,  it  seems  that,  after  his  baptism,  Paul  spoke 
a  few  times  in  the  synagogue  of  Damascus,  thus 
professing  publicly  his  new  faith,  and  that  then  he 
retired  to  Arabia,  where  he  was  alone  with  his 
Ivord,  in  training  for  his  great  work  for  a  part  of 
three  years.  Thus,  like  Moses  in  Midian,  and 
afterwards  in  the  mount,  like  Elijah  in  the  desert, 
and  Christ  in  the  wilderness,  like  Luther  in  the 
monastery,  and  afterwards  in  the  Wartburg,  Paul 
was  first  schooled  and  prepared  for  his  arduous 
mission.  Only  after  that  did  he  enter  fully  on  his 
apostolic  labors. 

In  closing,  let  us  still  notice  briefly  what  was  ex- 
traordinary and  miraculous  about  this  conversion, 
and  what  was  ordinary.  The  extraordinary  feat- 
^ures  were  the  blinding  flash  of  light,  the  vision  of 
the  glorified  Christ,  and  His  audible  personal 
address  to  Paul,  as  also  his  prostration  and  blind- 


CONVERSION   OF   PAUL.  183 

ness.  These  extraordinary  manifestations  and  ex- 
periences need  not  be  expected  to  be  repeated.  To 
wait  and  hope  for  such  things,  is  to  expect  that  for 
which  there  is  neither  ground  nor  promise.  They 
were  clearly  exceptional,  and  no  one  has  a  right  to 
look  for  their  repetition.  Whoever  puts  off  his 
conversion  in  hope  of  some  such  manifestations, 
will  probably  die  unconverted.  Neither  were  these 
extraordinary  features  the  real  agencies  of  Paul's 
conversion.  They  were  only  the  incidental  and 
attending  circumstances.  The  real  means  of  the 
conversion  were  its  ordinary  features. 

These  were,  on  God's  part,  the  Word.  Through 
it  Christ  revealed  Himself  and  His  seeking  Grace. 
Through  it  He  convinced  Paul  of  his  sin.  Through 
the  spoken  and  sacramental  Word  brought  by 
Ananias,  Paul  received  and  was  assured  of  the  for- 
giveness of  sin. 

On  the  part  of  Paul  the  ordinary  experiences,  as 
a  result  of  the  operation  of  the  Word,  were  the 
sense  of  sin  or  penitence  and  faith. 

Such  are  the  ordinary  means  of  Grace,  and  such 
Grace  comes  still  through  such  means,  and  such 
converting  power  they  still  carry.  These  are  the 
ordinary  features  of  Paul's  conversion.  They  are 
its  vital  and  essential  elements.     They  are  repeated 


184  NEW  TESTAMENT  CONVERSIONS. 

with  varied  experiences  and  phenomena  in  all 
conversions.  They  can  be  had  by  every  sinner. 
They  are  herewith  oflfered  to  every  unconverted 
reader  of  these  pages. 


SERMON  XIL 


THE  CONVERSION  OF  CORNELIUS. 

Acts  x.  i-6. 


9* 


Acts  X.  1-6.  There  was  a  certain  man  of  Cesarea  called  Cor- 
nelius, a  centurion  of  the  band  called  the  Italian  band. 

A  devout  man,  and  one  that  feared  God  with  all  his  house, 
which  gave  much  alms  to  the  people  and  prayed  to  God  always. 

He  saw  in  a  vision,  evidently  about  the  ninth  hour  of  the 
day,  an  angel  of  God  coming  in  to  him,  and  saying  unto  him, 
Cornelius. 

And  when  he  looked  on  him  he  was  afraid,  and  said :  What 
is  it,  Lord?  And  he  said  unto  him.  Thy  prayers  and  thine 
alms  are  come  up  for  a  memorial  before  God. 

And  now  send  men  to  Joppa,  and  call  for  one  Simon,  whose 
surname  is  Peter : 

He  lo^geth  with  one  Simon,  a  tanner,  whose  house  is  by  the 
sea-side  :  he  shall  tell  thee  what  thou  ouarhtest  to  do. 


SERMON    XII. 

The  very  interesting  chapter  from  which  our 
text  is  taken,  records  the  conversion  and  reception 
into  the  Christian  Church  of  the  first  Gentiles.  No 
doubt  there  had  been  Gentile  converts  received 
into  the  Apostolic  Church  before  Cornelius.  But 
they  had  all  become  converts  to  Judaism  first. 
They  had  come  into  the  Christian  Church  through 
the  door  of  the  Jewish.  They  had  first  submitted 
to  circumcision  and  all  the  ceremonial  require- 
ments of  the  Law  of  INIoses.  Thus  they  had  be- 
come proselytes  of  righteousness  and  worshippers 
in  the  temple  of  Jerusalem. 

Cornelius  and  his  household  wereuncircumcised, 
and  were  not  attendants  on  the  temple  services. 
Without  these  hitherto  essential  requirements,  they 
were  admitted  to  full  membership  in  the  infant 
Church.  This  was  the  turning  of  a  new  leaf  in 
the  Church's  experience  and  polity.  It  was  a  rad- 
ically new  departure,  an  epoch  of  the  most  vital 
and  far-reaching  consequences. 

It  is  interesting  to  notice  the  characters  that  fisr- 

ure  in  this  most  important  transaction. 

The   apostle  who   was   commissioned   to   bring 
(1S7) 


1 88  NEW  TESTAMENT  CONVERSIONS. 

about  the  conversion  and  admittance  into  the 
Church  of  these  first  Gentiles  was  Peter. 

Now,  as  far  as  we  know,  there  was  scarcely 
another  apostle  so  intensely  devoted  to  the  tradi- 
tions and  ceremonies  of  the  Fathers  as  he.  It  re- 
quired a  vision,  thrice  repeated,  a  special  message 
from  heaven,  and  a  plain  and  distinct  commission 
from  the  Spirit,  to  remove  his  prejudices  and  doubts 
and  make  him  willing  to  go  to  Cornelius. 

It  is  also  of  interest  to  study  the  history  and 
character  of  the  first  Gentile  convert.  This  will 
appear  as  we  now  consider  more  particularly  the 
conversion  of  Cornelius. 

We  noticQ^rsi :  His  unfavorable  surroundings. 

It  is  said  that  man  is  a  creature  of  circumstances. 
Much  is  said  and  written  of  the  potent  influence 
of  environment.  And  while  environment  is  wrongly 
made  the  excuse  for  many  sins  of  omission  and  of 
commission,  yet  we  must  admit  that  it  is  a  factor 
in  the  shaping  of  life  and  character. 

Some  persons  are  so  situated  that  it  is  almost  a 
matter  of  course  that  they  should  take  an  interest 
in  religion.  Others,  however,  are  so  circumstanced 
that  everything  seems  to  be  against  their  taking  an 
interest  in  spiritual  things. 

Not  that  we  believe  these  things  a  valid  excuse 


CONVERSION   OF   CORNELIUS.  189 

for  the  neglect  of  salvation.  Where  there  is  the 
proper  earnestness  and  interest  one  can  find  Christ 
and  be  true  to  Him  in  any  honest  and  honorable 
calling  and  amid  the  most  adverse  surroundings. 
Joseph  maintained  his  integrity  in  Potiphar's  house 
and  at  Pharaoh's  court.  Obadiah  remained  true 
to  his  God  at  the  corrupt  court  of  Ahab  and  Jezebel. 
And  Daniel  did  not  defile  himself,  but  devoutly 
worshipped  and  obeyed  his  God,  even  in  Babylon. 
Cornelius  also  was  begirt  with  unfavorable  sur- 
roundings. By  birth  he  was  a  heathen.  He  had 
no  birth-right  in  Israel,  and  was  not  of  the  chosen 
race.  He  was  born  an  alien  to  the  covenant,  a 
stranger  to  the  commonwealth,  and  excluded  from 
their  promises.  He  belonged  to  that  idolatrous 
nation  whose  corruption  and  degradation  are  so 
vividly  portrayed  in  the  first  chapter  of  Romans. 
At  the  time  when  godlessness,  abomination,  and 
crime  of  every  kind  had  reached  their  flood-tide  in 
the  empire,  Cornelius  held  a  government  office. 
We  know  to  our  sorrow  that  even  in  Christian 
lands  comparatively  few  government  officials  pay 
much  attention  to  religion.  What  then  could  we 
expect  from  an  officer  of  the  Roman  Empire  in  its 
darkest  days  ? 
•     But,  worse  than  that,  Cornelius  was  a  soldier,  an 


I  go  NEW  TESTAMENT  CONVERSIONS. 

army  officer,  centurion,  or  captain,  of  the  Italian 
band  or  company.  Military  life  has  always  been 
looked  upon  as  unfavorable  to  earnestness  in  re- 
ligion. Soldiers  even  in  Christian  lands  are  noted 
for  God-lessness,  looseness  of  morals  and  general 
recklessness.  The  camp,  the  field,  and  the  march 
seem  to  have  a  withering  influence  on  everything 
that  is  spiritual.  Now  Cornelius  was  a  captain  in 
Caesar's  army.  Surely  his  calling  and  situation  were 
not  calculated  to  make  him  a  devout  and  earnest 
inquirer  after  the  true  God  and  the  right  worship. 
His  environment  w^as  against  him.  From  a  human 
standpoint  he  would  not  be  considered  a  very  hope- 
ful subject  for  conversion.  And  yet,  in  spite  of  all 
this,  he  was  an  exceptionally  good  man. 

Let  us  notice  therefore,  secondly^  his  good  char- 
acter. 

He  was  a  strictly  honest  man.  His  servants,  who 
ought  to  know  him,  bring  this  report  to  Peter: 
Cornelius  is  a  just  man  aiid  of  good  7'epoi''t  among 
all  the  nation  of  the  Jews.  The  Jews  were  certainly 
not  partial  to  the  Roman  soldiers.  They  v/ere  far 
more  ready  to  see  the  sins  than  the  virtues  of  these 
their  enemies. 

If  a  Roman  centurion  therefore  had  a  good  re- 
port among  the  Jews,  his  character  must  have  been 


CONVERSION  OF  CORNELIUS.  19I 

of  exceptional  uprightness.  In  attributing  to  liim 
such  a  character  for  honesty,  the  Jews  and  the  ser- 
vants of  Cornelius  agree. 

But  honesty  is  not  religion.  A  man  can  be 
scrupulously  just  and  upright  in  all  his  dealings, 
and  yet  be  and  remain  a  stranger  to  God  and  His 
Grace.  Honesty  alone  can  never  save  the  soul. 
On  the  other  hand,  however,  let  it  never  be  forgot- 
ten, that  while  honesty  is  not  religion,  yet  there 
can  be  no  true  religion  without  honesty.  There 
never  can  be  saving  Grace  in  the  heart  and  wilful 
dishonesty  in  the  life.  A  man  may  talk  ever  so 
earnestly  about  his  experience,  he  may  pray  ever 
so  fervently  in  prayer-meeting,  if  he  does  not  make 
every'  effort  to  pay  his  honest  debts,  if  he  cheats  in 
his  business  transactions,  takes  advantage  of  ignor- 
ance, adulterates  his  goods,  gives  short  weight  or 
measure,  misrepresents  value,  or  does  dishonest 
work,  we  take  no  stock  in  his  piety.  To  be  a 
Christian  one  must  be  honest,  but  one  can  be 
honest  and  not  a  Christian. 

Cornelius  was  also  a  liberal  man.  He  gave 
vuich  alms  to  the  people.  It  is  a  good  thing  to  be 
liberal.  To  be  large-hearted  and  open-handed  is 
certainly  no  small  virtue.  But  liberality  in  itself 
is  not  religion,     A  person  can  give  liberally  and 


192  NEW  TESTAMENT  CONVERSIONS. 

freely  to  every  good  cause,  even  while  he  has  an 
unregenerate  heart.  There  are  many  who  have  no 
saving  interest  in  Christ  who  yet  give  largely  to 
Christ's  poor  and  to  Christ's  Church. 

Again,  however,  we  must  also  bear  in  mind  that 
while  one  can  be  liberal  without  being  in  a  state 
of  Grace,  one  cannot  be  in  a  state  of  Grace  without 
being  ready  to  communicate.  We  have  no  faith  in 
a  stingy  Christian.  According  to  the  divine  Word 
covetotisjtess  is  idolatry.  He  who  professes  to  love 
Christ  and  is  yet  unwilling  to  give  to  the  cause  of 
Christ,  loves  only  in  word.  If  it  hurts  him  to  give 
instead  of  giving  him  joy,  if  he  complains  when 
asked  to  give  back  a  part  of  what  God  has  just 
lent  him,  instead  of  rejoicing  that  he  is  able  to 
give,  there  is  something  seriously  wrong  with  his 
heart.  A  true  conversion  reaches  the  pocket-book 
as  well  as  the  heart.  Grace  enlarges  the  heart  and 
opens  the  hand. 

So  while  Cornelius  had  the  virtue  of  liberality, 
this  would  not  necessarily  prove  him  in  a  state  of 
Grace.  But  he  was,  further,  a  devout  man.  He 
feared  God  with  all  his  hoiise^  and  prayed  to  God 
always. 

It  is  possible  to  be  a  devout  heathen.  Those 
who  were  loyal  to  the  divinities  of  Rome  and  their 


CONVERSION   OF   CORNELIUS.  I93 

temples  and  shrines,  those  who  regularly  brought 
their  sacrifices  and  offerings,  were  devout  worship- 
pers of  false  gods.  It  was  not  in  this  sense  that 
Cornelius  was  devout.  He  had  long  since  seen  the 
folly  and  sin  of  recognizing  and  worshipping  the 
myriad  gods  of  Rome.  He  had  learned  to  recog- 
nize Jehovah,  the  God  of  Israel,  as  the  one  and' 
only  true  God.  It  was  Jehovah  that  he  feared.  It 
was  Jehovah  that  he  taught  his  family  and  servants 
to  fear.  It  was  to  Jehovah  that  he  prayed  always^ 
i.  e.,  habitually  and  regularly. 

In  this  also  Cornelius  was  in  advance  of  man}- 
who  profess  to  be  children  of  God  and  members  of 
the  Church  of  Christ.  It  is  a  humiliating  fact  that 
there  are  thousands  of  professing  Christians  who 
seldom  if  ever  pray.  They  allow  the  pastor  to  do 
the  praying  for  them.  They  know  not  what  it 
is  to  bow  the  knee  in  the  closet  and  pour  out  the 
heart  and  heart-yearnings  before  God.  Much  less 
do  they  pray  with  their  families.  Their  children 
grow  up  around  them  without  an  example  of  either 
private  or  family  devotion.  And  as  to  praying 
with  their  servants  and  encouraging  them  to  pray, 
this  would  seem  to  them  preposterous.  The  ser- 
vants are  treated  as  if  they  had  no  souls.  There 
are  no  provisions  for  their  spiritual  wants.     They 


194  NEW  TESTAMENT  CONVERSIONS. 

are  almost  compelled  to  live  heathen  lives  in  so- 
called  Christian  families.  Cornelius  prayed.  He 
prayed  with  his  family.  He  prayed  with  his  ser- 
vants. 

Then  he  was  certainly  a  child  of  Grace,  a  con- 
verted man,  a  true  believer!  Was  he?  Not  nec- 
essarily. It  is  indeed  possible  to  have  a  correct 
knowledge  of  the  true  God,  to  offer  Him  an  out- 
ward worship,  and  even  to  have  regular  habits  of 
prayer,  and  yet  not  be  a  subject  of  His  saving 
Grace.  There  is  certainly  no  healthy  Christian 
life  without  prayer.  Prayer  has  been  aptly  called 
the  pulse  of  the  new  life.  And  yet  one  can  have 
the  form  of  prayer  without  its  spirit  and  life.  Not 
that  we  think  the  prayers  of  Cornelius  hypocriti- 
cal, engaged  in  for  the  express  purpose  of  deceiv- 
ing. Neither  were  they  altogether  lifeless  and 
formal.  But  they  were  not  yet  the  outbreathings 
of  a  renewed  heart.  We  believe  that  Cornelius 
was  seeking  after  more  light,  feeling  after  God,  if 
haply  he  might  find  Him,  as  a  wandering  child 
finds  a  loving  father,  and  nestles  in  his  strong  arms. 

This  leads  us  to  inquire  thirdly^  What  did  Cor- 
nelius still  want? 

We  know  that  there  are  those  who  contend  that 
he  was  already  a  true  believer,  or  a  converted  man. 


CONVERSION   OF   CORNELIUS.  I95 

After  a  careful  study  of  the  whole  subject,  we  are 
persuaded  that  he  was  in  the  way  towards  conver- 
sion, was  being  prepared  for  it  by  his  study  of  the 
Word,  his  prayers,  and  strivings.  But  the  one 
thing  needful  he  had  not  yet  found. 

If  Cornelius  had  been  already  in  the  way  of  sal- 
vation, why  was  he  directed  to  send  for  Peter? 
And  why  did  Peter  consent  to  go?  The  servants 
who  came  for  Peter  remained  with  him  a  part  of  a 
day  and  a  whole  night.  Peter  had  ample  time  to 
inquire  into  the  character  and  attainments  of  Cor- 
nelius. Why,  after  hearing  such  a  good  report  of 
his  character,  his  good  works,  and  his  devotioji, 
did  Peter  still  consent  to  go?  Why  not  dismiss 
these  servants,  with  the  message  to  Cornelius  that 
he  needed  no  further  light  or  Grace?  Evidently 
Peter  did  not  believe  that  Cornelius  was  already  in 
a  state  of  Grace. 

This  becomes  still  more  manifest  when  we  read 
in  the  fourteenth  verse  of  the  eleventh  chapter  that 
the  angel  told  Cornelius  that  he  '"'' shall  tell  thee 
ivords  luhereby  thoii  and  all  thy  house  shall  be  saved. ' ' 
If  he  needed  words  whereby  he  should  be  saved^  he 
was  not  yet  in  the  way  of  salvation. 

Again,  in  the  eighteenth  verse  of  the  same 
chapter,  after  Peter  had  rehearsed  the  whole  story 


196  NEW  TESTAMENT  CONVERSIONS. 

to  the  doubting  brethren,  we  read:  ''''WJien  they 
heard  these  things  they  held  their  peace  and  glori- 
fied God^  saying^  Then  hath  God  also  to  the  Gentiles 
granted  repe7ttance  unto  life. ' '  Corneli us  therefore 
had  still  needed  that  repentance  tuito  life. 

It  would  seem  then  that  he  still  needed  a  clear 
idea  of  the  sinfulness  of  sin,  a  realizing  sense  of 
his  own  guiltiness,  his  need  and  helplessness.  He 
needed  to  learn  that  sin  was  such  a  serious,  death- 
bringing  and  damning  thing,  that  his  own  good 
works  and  devotions  could  not  render  satisfaction 
and  make  him  acceptable  in  God's  sight.  True, 
God  was  well  pleased  with  his  searchings  and 
strivings  and  efforts.  But  all  these  could  not  save 
him.  He  needed  a  change  of  heart,  a  repentance 
unto  life.  He  was  too  much  of  a  poor,  lost  and 
condemned  creature  to  bring  this  about  by  his  own 
strength  or  reason.  He  needed  "words"  to  bring 
him  to  such  repentance,  and  to  save  him.  These 
zvords  were  not  only  to  inform  him  about  sin  and 
about  one  mighty  to  save^  but  they  were  to  bring 
this  Saviour  to  him,  and  him  to  this  Saviour.  For 
"/(9  IIii7i  give  all  the  prophets  witness  that  through 
-His  name.,  whosoever  believeth  in  Him  shall  receive 
remission  of  siii.'*''  Cornelius  needed  to  give  up  all 
confidence  in  self,  and  to  put  his  whole  trust  in  a 


CONVERSION   OF  CORNELIUS.  197 

crucified  Redeemer.  Only  after  this  had  taken 
place  could  it  be  said  that  he  had  passed  from  death 
unto  life. 

We  notice  finally  how  this  change  was  brought 
about  in  Cornelius. 

The  change  that  he  needed  could  be  brought 
about  "«(3^  by  might  nor  by  power ^  {i.  e.^  not  by 
human  might  or  power,)  but  by  my  Spirit^  saith  the 
Lord. ' '  He  needed  that  Spirit  to  convince  him  of 
his  own  sin^  of  his  need  of  another's  righteousness^ 
and  of  d.  judgment  to  come  on  all  those  who  are  not 
delivered  from  the  prince  of  this  world.  In  other 
words,  he  needed  the  Spirit  of  God  to  bring  him  to 
repentance  and  to  beget  faith  in  him. 

And  how  did  he  receive  that  Spirit?  Jesus  had 
said,  "the  words  that  I  speak  unto  you,  they  are 
spirit  and  they  are  life. ' '  And  that  this  applied  not 
only  to  the  words  that  fell  from  His  own  lips,  but 
to  the  preaching  of  all  who  would  preach  His 
Word,  becomes  clear  when  we  remember  how  He 
breathed  on  His  apostles,  and  said,  '"''receive  ye  the 
Holy  Ghost ^''^  and  afterwards:  "//<?  that  heareth you 
heareth  me  .  .  and  he  that  despiseth  you  despiseth 
me.''''  The  whole  Word  of  God  is  therefore  called 
an  administration  of  the  Spirit,  and  the  sword  of 
the  Spirit.     In  the  former  sermons  on  the  conver- 


198  NEW  TESTAMENT  CONVERSIONS. 

sions  of  the  New  Testament,  we  have  seen  how  the 
Spirit  of  God  fevery  time  brought  the  renewing 
Grace  of  God  through  the  Word  of  God.  So  here 
Peter  was  to  bring  words^  mere  words.  And  what 
good  could  words  do?  By  them  or  through  them 
Cornelius  was  to  be  saved.  Peter  brought  words; 
He  preached,  He  preached  Christ,  His  coming, 
His  office,  His  work.  His  death,  His  resurrection, 
and  His  return  to  judgment.  He  preached  the, 
necessity  of  Faith  in  this  Christ,  and  the  certainty 
of  the  remission  of  sins  through  faith  in  His  name. 
These  words  were  spirit  and  life.  They  carried 
the  Spirit,  and  therefore  this  preaching  of  the 
Gospel  was  the  pozuer  of  God  unto  salvation  to  Cor- 
nelius also.  It  pleased  God  by  the  foolishness  of 
preaching  to  save  Cornelius  and  his  household. 

While  Peter  preached  zvords^  the  spirit  fell  visibly 
on  those  who  heard.  He  does  not  always  come 
thus  visibly.  He  ordinarily  comes  invisibly  but 
effectually  through  the  Word.  But  this  was  a 
special  case.  It  was  the  first  coming  of  the  Spirit 
of  Pentecost  to  the  uncircumcised.  Apostles  and 
believing  Jews  did  not  believe  that  the  Spirit  would 
come  upon  the  uncircumcised.  In  order  to  fully 
convince  Peter,  in  order  to  convince  the  six 
Jewish  witnesses  who  had  come  from  Joppa  with 


CONVERSION   OF  CORNELIUS.  1 99 

Peter,  in  order  to  remove  every  possible  doubt  from 
the  minds  of  the  Gentiles  themselves,  therefore, 
He  came  in  this  instance  visibly.  Therefore  He 
came  not  as  usually  through  the  preached  and 
sacramental  Word,  which  was  afterwards  adminis- 
tered. It  was  thus  for  special  reasons  that  He  sep- 
arated Himself  on  this  occasion  from  the  Word 
while  it  was  being  preached,  and  fell  in  visible 
form. 

We  see  then  how  Cornelius  was  saved  by  the 
words  preached,  followed  hy  the  sacramental  Word 
of  baptism. 

But  the  Word  had  to  be  preached.  It  had  to  be 
preached  by  one  called  of  God.  This  also  is  God's 
order.  It  has  so  pleased  Him  that  His  saving 
Word  should  be  brought  to  man  by  man.  The 
angel  might  have  preached  to  Cornelius.  He 
mis^ht  have  broug-ht  to  him  the  words  that  he 
needed.  But  this  is  not  God's  plan.  If  the  Nine- 
vites  are  to  be  warned,  Jonah  must  needs  go  and 
preach  the  preaching  that  he  is  commanded.  If 
Saul  of  Tarsus  asks,  "Zor</,  ivhat  wilt  thou  have 
me  to  dof''  the  Lord  does  not  tell  him,  but  directs 
him  to  go  and  wait  for  one  Ananias.  And  if  Cor- 
nelius sees  an  angel  and  asks  him:  What  t's  it^ 
Lord  ?  he  is  directed  to  send  for  Peter.     And  so  it 


200  NEW  TESTAMENT  CONVERSIONS. 

is  still.  The  ministerial  office  is  a  divine  institu- 
tion. As  such  it  is  necessary,  but  let  no  man  take 
tiiis  office  unto  himself  biUhe  that  is  called^  as  was 
Aaron. 

And  thus  was  Cornelius  converted. 

This  whole  history  is  of  the  most  vital  import- 
ance to  the  whole  Church  of  Christ.  It  teaches 
that  one  can  go  quite  far  in  professions,  in  works, 
and  in  worship,  and  still  be  in  an  unsaved  condi- 
tion. 

If  such  a  good  man,  and  of  such  good  report, 
and  honored  for  his  devoutness,  if  such  an  one  still 
needed  conversion,  how  is  it  with  us?  What  of 
our  hearts?  Do  we  know  what  penitence  is? 
— what  trusting,  clinging  faith  in  Christ  is?  Do 
we  experimentally  know  CJirist  and  the  fellowship 
of  His  suffering  and  the  power  of  His  resurreetion? 
Examine  yourselves^  zvhether  ye  be  in  the  faith : 
prove  your  own  selves. 


SERMON  XIII, 


The  Conversion  of  Sergius  Paulus. 

Acts  xiii.  6-12. 


Acts  xiii.  6-12.  Aud  wheu  they  had  gone  through  the  isle 
unto  Paphos,  they  found  a  certain  sorcerer,  a  false  prophet,  a 
Jew,  whose  name  was  Bar-jesus: 

Which  was  with  the  deputy  of  the  country,  Sergius  Paulus,  a 
prudent  man  ;  who  called  for  Barnabas  and  Saul,  and  desired  to 
hear  the  word  of  God. 

But  Elymas  the  sorcerer  (for  so  is  his  name  by  interpretation) 
withstood  them,  seeking  to  turn  away  the  deputy  from  the 
faith. 

Then  Saul,  (who  also  is  called  Paul,)  filled  with  the  Holy 
Ghost,  set  his  eyes  on  him, 

And  said,  O  full  of  all  subtilty  and  all  mischief,  thou  child 
of  the  devil,  thou  enemy  of  all  righteousness,  wilt  thou  not 
cease  to  pervert  the  right  ways  of  the  I/ord  ? 

And  now,  behold,  the  hand  of  the  Lord  is  upon  thee,  and 
thou  shalt  be  blind,  not  seeing  the  sun  for  a  season.  And  im- 
mediately there  fell  on  him  a  mist  and  a  darkness,  and  he 
went  about  seeking  some  to  lead  him  by  the  hand. 

Then  the  deputy,  when  he  saw  what  was  done,  believed,  be- 
ing astonished  at  the  doctrine  of  the  Lord. 


SERMON   XIII. 

The  apostle  Paul  was  just  starting  on  his  first 
missionary  journey.  Of  his  labors  from  the  time 
of  his  conversion  up  to  this  point,  we  have  only 
the  most  general  account.  He  had  labored  some 
iii  Damascus,  in  Jerusalem,  in  his  native  city  of 
Tarsus,  and  in  Antioch.  In  the  latter  city  he  and 
Barnabas  had  labored  for  about  a  year,  and  gath- 
ered quite  a  congregation.  It  was  there  also  that 
the  disciples  were  first  called  Christians. 

It  was  not  the  mission  of  the  great  apostle,  how- 
ever, to  be  the  settled  pastor  of  a  congregation. 
He  had  been  called  to  the  more  important  and 
difficult  work  of  a  traveling  missionary.  It  was  to 
be  his  work  to  be  a  pioneer,  to  go  ahead,  preach 
the  Gospel  in  places  where  it  had  not  yet  been 
heard,  gather  congregations  and  plant  Churches  in 
these  new  places.  He  was  not  to  enter  upon  other 
men's  labors,  but  was  rather  to  lay  foundations  for 
others  to  build  on. 

It  was  while  Barnabas  and  Paul  were  busy  at 
Antioch,  and  while  their  work  was  prospering 
abundantly,     that    the    Holy   Ghost   said    to   the 

(203) 


204  NEW  TESTAMENT  CONVERSIONS. 

Church:  Separate  jne  Barnabas  and  Saul  for  the 
work  whereunto  I  have  called  them.  Departing 
from  Antioch  they  had  sailed  to  the  island  of 
Cyprus.  There  they  preached  first  in  the  city  of 
Salamis,  and  from  thence  they  went  to  the  western 
end  of  the  island,  to  the  city  of  Paphos.  Here  also 
they  entered  vigorously  upon  their  work  of  preach- 
ing the  Gospel.  But  here,  as  everywhere,  they 
found  that  the  devil  had  been  there  ahead  of  them. 
So  it  has  always  been,  and  so  it  is  to-day.  The 
prince  of  this  world  gets  in  his  work  first.  We 
are  indeed  all  born  under  the  dominion  of  sin  and 
Satan.  Every  human  heart,  in  its  natural  state,  is 
the  abode  of  sin,  and  where  sin  is  there  is  Satan 
also.  And  therefore  every  city  and  country  and 
clime  are  more  or  less  under  his  dark  and  mysteri- 
ous sway.  Wherever  missionaries  go,  at  home  or 
abroad,  into  churcliless  districts  or  Christless 
homes,  they  find  that  the  devil  has  been  there  be- 
fore them.  They  find  that  he  will  oppose  every 
effort  they  make  to  bring  in  the  kingdom  of  God 
and  establish  the  right  ways  of  the  Lord.  The 
prince  of  darkness  had  a  special  and  powerful 
emissary  in  the  capital  city  of  Paphos.  Through 
his  wicked  agent  he  tried,  as  he  always  does,  to 
bring  the  governor  of  the  island  completely  under 


CONVRRSION   OF  SERGIUS  PAULUS.  205 

his  sway.  He  is  crafty  enough  to  know  that  if  he 
can  get  a  ruler,  a  king,  a  mayor,  or  any  one  of 
authority  and  iafluence,  it  is  a  mighty  help  to  his 

cause. 

The  two  missionaries  had  to  meet  him.     It  came 
to  an  open  contest.     The  result  was  the  conversion 
of  Sergius  Paulus,  the  first  prominent  conversion 
under  Paul  of  which  we  have  any  account.     We 
consider  this  a  very  important  conversion.     Some 
conversions  are  more  important  than  others.     Not 
that  one  soul  is  of  more  value  in  God's  sight  than 
another.     He  is  no  respecter  of  persons.     In  his 
sight  the  soul  of  Sergius  Paulus,  the  governor  of 
Cyprus,  is  of  no  more  value  than  the  soul  of  one  of 
his  slaves.     Both  are  equally  the  purchase  of  the 
precious  blood  of  Christ.     Still,  the  conversion  of 
Paulus   is  of  greater   importance   and  of  greater 
value  to  the  Church,  because  of  his  position,  his 
authority  and  influence.     He  could  do  more  for 
the  young  Church  and  new  faith  than  one  of  his 
slaves,  and  therefore  we  consider  his  an  important 
conversion. 

In  studying  this  conversion,  we  inquire /r^/  into 
the  history,  character  and  position  of  the  man. 
Sergius  Paulus  was  a  Roman,  and  therefore  a 
I  heathen.     He  had   been  bred  and  brought  up  in 


2o6  NEW  TESTAMENT  CONVERSIONS. 

the  state  religion  of  the  Roman  empire.  That  re- 
ligion was  at  that  time  the  most  vile,  corrupt,  and 
criminal  heathenism  on  the  face  of  the  earth.  We 
have  a  graphic  picture  of  it  in  the  first  chapter  of 
Romans.  Sergius  Paulus  had,  from  childhood 
up,  drunk  in  its  abominations  and  criminalities. 
Surely  all  this  was  against  him. 

But,  notwithstanding  all  this,  we  read  that  he 
was  a  pi^iident  man.  He  was  a  thoughtful  man, 
given  to  sober  investigation  and  clear  discernment. 
This  is  all  the  more  to  his  credit,  when  we  recall 
the  fact  that,  in  those  dissolute  times,  there  were 
few  men  who  were  prudent  thinkers.  It  was  a 
time  when  most  Romans  of  means  and  leisure  were 
wholly  given  up  to  the  indulgence  of  the  lusts  of 
the  flesh.  To  revel  in  dissipation,  debauchery  and 
vice  was  the  chief  occupation  of  Roman  citizens. 
This  was  especially  true  of  government  officials. 
Their  position  seemed  to  entitle  them  to  *  rioting 
and  drunkenness.^  and  chambering  and  zvantonness. 
And  to  these  they  gave  their  attention,  their  money 
and  their  time. 

Sergius  Paulus  was  Proconsul,  or  governor  of 
Cyprus.  As  a  quiet  and  peaceful  province,  this 
island  was  under  the  control  and  patronage  of  the 
Senate.     As  such  it  required  very  little  governing, 


CONVERSION   OF  SERGIUS   PAULUS.  207 

and  the  office  of  Sergius  was  without  much  care  or 
responsibility.  It  would  have  been  the  most  nat- 
ural thing  therefore  for  him  to  while  away  the 
tedium  of  his  monotonous  life  by  headlong  indul- 
gence of  the  flesh.  Add  to  this  the  fact  that  the 
capital  city  Paphos  was  the  reputed  birthplace  of 
the  goddess  Venus,  and  that  her  impure  worship 
flourished  abundantly  there.  Consider  the  influ- 
ence on  public  life  and  morals  which  that  most 
unchaste  of  all  idolatries  would  have.  Then  re- 
member that  to  all  this  temptation  Sergius  Paulus 
was  exposed.  And  still  he  remained  a  prudent 
man.  This  speaks  much  for  his  intelligent  and 
moral  character. 

Such  was  Sergius  Paulus,  the  governor  of 
Cyprus. 

Let  us  notice  secondly  his  deeper  longings. 

He  evidently  believed  in  the  higher  powers  of  an 
unseen  realm.  He  was  convinced  of  the  existence 
of  beings  and  influences  beyond  and  above  the 
regions  of  sense.  He  had  faith  in  the  supernatural. 
As  a  serious,  reflecting  and  candid  man,  he  felt 
that  this  earth  is  not  the  only  abode  of  man, 
and  this  life  is  not  the  whole  of  existence.  He 
realized  that  man  is  related  to  two  worlds.  No 
doubt  his  conceptions  were  very  vague,  and  his 


2o8  NEW  TESTAMENT  CONVERSIONS. 

ideas  very  crude.  How  could  it  be  otherwise,  when 
his  only  guides  were  nature,  conscience  and  the 
ignorant  pretenders  of  a  degraded  religion?  The 
belief  in  the  unseen  powers  of  an  unseen  world  is 
inborn  with  man.  He  can  only  rid  himself  of  it 
by  a  positive  and  persistent  effort  of  his  will.  In- 
deed, it  is  doubtful  whether  man  ever  really  gets 
rid  of  this  innate  conviction.  It  is  more  than 
likely  that  all  thoughtful  skeptics  are  like  that  one 
in  Ohio,  who  said:  "I  do  not  believe  in  a  here- 
after, and  yet  I  would  give  my  best  yoke  of  oxen 
if  I  were  sure  that  there  is  none. ' '  The  conviction 
is  too  deep-seated  to  be  easily  got  rid  of,  and  how- 
ever individuals  may  here  and  there  try  to  become 
atheists,  the  mass  of  mankind  must  always  believe 
in  some  kind  of  a  god,  and  in  some  kind  of  a  relig- 
ion. So  it  was  with  Sergius  Paulus.  He  had  no 
doubt  accepted  the  religion  of  the  Empire  in  his 
earlier  days,  but  he  had  become  disgusted  with 
and  discarded  it.  It  had  degenerated  into  such 
open  and  public  fraud  and  knavery,  that  its  own 
priests  scarcely  believed  in  it.  Cicero  tells  us  that 
in  his  day  two  priests,  while  ministering  together 
in  the  temples  of  the  gods,  could  not  look  each 
other  in  the  face  without  laughing. 

But  Sergius  Paulus  was  not  ready  to  throw  away 


CONVERSION  OF  SERGIUS  PAULUS.  209 

all  religion.  He  felt  that  somewhere  there  must 
be  a  true  religion;  one  that  could  satisfy  the  crav- 
ings of  the  heart.  Would  that  all  who  have  been 
deluded  by  the  vagaries  of  man,  as  if  these  were 
the  revelation  of  God,  would  thus  seek  for  the 
truth  until  they  find  it,  and  the  peace  which  it 
alone  can  give. 

Sergius  had  heard  of  the  Jewish  religion.  Its 
purer  and  sterner  faith  had  attracted  many  thought- 
ful strangers,  who  became  proselytes.  Now  there 
was  a  Jewish  sorcerer  or  magician  in  Paphos.  He 
doubtless  passed  himself  off  as  a  representative  of 
the  Jewish  faith.  Sergius  Paulus  had  heard  of  his 
pretensions  to  occult  powers  and  mysteries.  He 
had  sent  for  him  with  the  hope  of  finding  that 
truth  and  satisfaction. for  which  he  longed.  This 
deceiver  was  present  at  the  governor's  court  when 
the  two  missionaries  of  the  Gospel  began  their 
work  in  the  city.  Sergius  Paulus  heard  of  their 
preaching  of  the  Gospel  of  the  Son  of  God.  He 
heard  how  they  claimed  to  be  the  ambassadors  of 
Jehovah,  the  God  of  Israel,  and  to  bring  His  mes- 
sage; how  they  preached  that  Jesus  of  Nazareth 
was  the  Redeemer  and  Saviour  of  mankind,  and 
had  been  delivered  up  to  the  cross  for  man's  of- 
fences, and  raised  again  for  his  justification,  and 


2IO  NEW  TESTAMENT   CONVERSIONS. 

that  whosoever  believeth  in  Him  should  have  the 
full  and  free  remission  of  all  his  sins.  The  simple 
and  earnest  preaching  of  these  sincere  and  devoted 
missionaries  had  made  an  impression  in  the  city. 
The  governor  had  heard  about  it.  The  tricks  and 
pretensions  of  his  magicians  had  failed  to  satisfy 
him.  The  rumors  of  the  evangelists  and  their 
pure  and  wondrous  message  had  waked  in  his  heart 
also  longings  after  the  pure  and  holy.  He  called 
for  Barnabas  and  Saul^  and  desired  to  hear  the 
Word  of  God.  This  desire  for  the  Word  shows  the 
workings  of  preparatory  Grace  in  his  heart.  It 
was  an  important  step  towards  his  conversion 
when  he  sent  for  these  preachers  of  the  Gospel. 

It  is  always  a  very  hopeful  and  helpful  step, 
when  the  sinner,  weary  of  the  vagaries  and  specu- 
lations of  men,  seeks  out  the  true  ministers  of  the 
truth,  and  desires  from  them  light  from  the  Word 
of  God.  Or,  uncertain  to  whom  to  go,*  if  he  resorts 
simply  to  his  Bible,  and  prayerfully  seeks  the  light 
from  its  sacred  pages,  such  an  inquirer  is  already 
entering  upon  the  way  of  salvation. 

We  notice  thirdly  the  work  of  the  Word  with 
Sergius  Paulus. 

The  Word  was  preached  to  the  governor.  It  was 
preached  in  all  its  plainness  and  with  all  its  power. 


CONVERSION   OF  SERGIUS  PAULUS.  211 

It  was  a  new  revelation  to  Sergius  Paulus.  Such 
wonderful  words  of  life  lie  had  never  heard.  The 
Word  wa's  making  way  in  his  heart,  and  he  felt 
himself  convinced,  convicted  and  drawn. 

The  sorcerer  saw  that  he  was  in  danger  of  losing 
his  profitable  and  influential  position.  Satan  does 
not  give  up  his  votaries  and  victims  without  an 
effort  to  hold  them.  The  governor  was  too  valua- 
ble an  adherent  to  give  up.  He  must  be  held  at 
all  hazards.  The  Word  of  God  is  not  allowed  to 
have  free  course.  It  must  be  mightily  opposed. 
Barnabas  and  Saul  must  be  refuted  or  silenced. 
^^  Elyinas  the  sorcerer  withstood  them^  seeking  to 
itcrft  away  the  deputy  f}'07n  the  faiths 

So  it  always  is.  The  proverb  says:  "Where  the 
Lord  builds  a  church  the  devil  puts  up  a  chapel 
along  side  of  it."  There  are  not  wanting  those 
who  like  this  sorcerer  oppose  the  Word,  and  try  to 
turn  every  prospective  convert  away  from  the  faith. 

We  have  then  the  ambassador  of  Christ  and  the 
child  of  the  devil  face  to  face.  We  have  on  the 
one  side  the  plain  unvarnished  Gospel,  on  the 
other  all  subtilty  and  mischief  and  perversion. 
We  have  open  candor  in  conflict  with  knavery, 
treachery  and  lies.  The  prudent  governor  looks 
on.     He  hears  both  sides.     He  sees  the  truth  and 


212  NEW  TESTAMENT   CONVERSIONS. 

error  face  to  face.  Like  Jannes  and  Jambres  who 
withstood  Moses  and  Aaron  in  the  presence  of  the 
ruler  of  Egypt,  so  Elymas  withstands  Paul  in  the 
presence  of  the  ruler  of  Cyprus.  What  will  the 
outcome  be?  Pharaoh  had  hardened  his  heart  and 
sided  with  the  magicians,  against  Moses  and 
Aaron. 

But  Sergius  Paulus  does  not  harden  his  heart. 
He  does  not  resist  the  truth.  He  does  not  stifle  con- 
viction, or  grieve  the  Spirit,  or  dismiss  Paul  as  an- 
other ruler  afterwards  did,  and  said:  ''^Go  thy  way 
for  this  time ;  when  I  have  a  more  convenient  sea- 
son I  will  e  all  for  thee.''''  The  mind  of  Sergius  is 
unbiased.  His  heart  is  opened.  He  hears  and  re- 
ceives the  truth.  The  truth  comes  out  triumphant. 
Truth  needs  never  to  be  afraid  of  error.  Truth  is 
mighty  and  must  prevail.  Wherever  hearts  are 
not  barred  against  it,  truth  does  prevail.  All  it 
asks  is  an  unprejudiced  mind  and  a  sincere  heart. 

Sergius  saw  and  felt  the  superiority  of  the  truth. 
He  saw  the  trickster  and  liar  confounded.  He  saw 
the  righteous  indignation  of  Paul  against  the  im- 
postor. He  heard  the  authoritative  and  stern 
rebuke  of  villainy.  He  saw  its  power.  He  saw 
the  would-be  miracle  worker  stricken  blind. 

In  the  stern  rebuke  of  the  sorcerer,  Sergius  must 


CONVERSION  OF  SERGIUS  PAULUS.  213 

have  felt  himself  rebuked  for  harboring  such  a 
child  of  the  devil  and  enemy  of  all  righteousness. 
This  must  have  moved  the  governor  to  shame  and 
contrition.  Otherwise  it  would  have  moved  him 
to  anger.  He  felt  the  rebuke,  he  bowed  under  it. 
He  repented  of  his  sin.  He  cherished  that  godly 
sorrow  that  leadeth  to  repentance  not  to  be  re- 
pented of 

Further,  he  believed^  as  a  prudent,  clear-headed, 
and  wise  man.  He  weighed  the  truth.  He  was 
convinced  of  its  superiority.  So  is  every  candid 
inquirer.  He  felt  its  power  in  his  own  heart.  He 
saw  its  power  on  the  wilful  impostor.  He  was  as- 
tonished at  the  doctrine.  He  accepted  the  doctrine 
because  he  saw  and  felt  its  power.  Why  don't 
unbelievers  now  judge  the  doctrine  by  its  fruits? 
Why  will  they  shut  their  eyes  against  its  effects? 
Why  deny  its  purifying  and  transforming  power  in 
those  who  sincerely  accept  it?  Why  deny  its  con- 
quests over  error  and  opposition  ?  Sergius  saw  the 
power  and  was  astonished  at  the  doctrine.  He 
believed. 

He  was  therefore  a  converted  man.  He  had  true 
faith,  and  true  faith  presupposes  penitence.  And 
penitence  and  faith  make  up  conversion. 

We  see  again  how  the  Spirit  wrought  through 


214  NEW  TESTAMENT  CONVERSIONS. 

the  Word.  The  Word,  as  the  organ  of  the  Spirit, 
did  the  whole  work.  The  Word  is  the  Lord's 
agency  in  every  conversion.  There  can  be  no  true 
conversion  without  the  Word.  There  are  true  con- 
versions wherever  hearts  bow  to  the  power  of  the 
Word. 

Does  any  one  read  these  pages  who  has  not  found 
peace  in  believing?  Reader,  are  you  such  an  one? 
You  believe  in  another  life  and  another  world. 
You  have  felt  your  need  of  some  kind  of  a  religion. 
You  have  perhaps  made  trial  of  something  that  has 
called  itself  the  religion  of  Jesus  Christ.  You  have 
been  deluded,  disappointed.  Have  you  then 
thrown  away  all  religion?  Why  not  follow  the 
example  of  Paulus?  Go  to  the  Word  of  God.  It 
will  satisfy.  It  will  save.  It  has  never  disap- 
pointed an  honest  seeker  after  truth  and  life.  It 
will  not  disappoint  you. 


SERMON  XIV. 


The  Conversion  of  Lydia. 

Acts  xvi.  13-16. 


Ads  xvi.  13-16.  And  on  the  Sabbath  we  went  out  of  the  city 
by  a  river-side,  where  prayer  was  wont  to  be  made  ;  and  we  sat 
down,  and  spake  unto  the  women  which  resorted  thither. 

And  a  certain  woman  named  Lydia,  a  seller  of  purple,  of  the 
city  of  Thyatira,  which  worshipped  God,  heard  us: 

Whose  heart  the  I^ord  opened,  that  she  attended  unto  the 
things  which  were  spoken  of  Paul. 

And  when  she  was  baptized,  and  her  household,  she  besought 
us,  saying.  If  ye  have  judged  me  to  be  faithful  to  the  Lord, 
come  into  my  house,  and  abide  there.     And  she  constrained  us. 


SERMON  XIV. 

The  Apostle  Paul  was  on  his  second  great  mis- 
sionary journey.     Before   he  started   out  on    this 
memorable  tour,  and  during  the  early  part  of  its 
progress,  he  had  met  with  several  sore  disappoint- 
ments, so  that  his  plans  and  purposes  seemed  to  be 
repeatedly  thwarted.     It  was  while  -making  prepa- 
rations to  start  out  from  Antioch,  that  he  had  that 
unhappy  quarrel  with  Barnabas,  which  separated 
these    two   pioneer    missionaries   in    their    future 
activity.     In  Galatia,    it  seems,    the  Apostle  was 
detained   by  a  long  and  severe  sickness.     When 
they  wanted  to  go  into  the  province  called  Asia, 
they  were  forbidden  of  the  Holy  Ghost  to  preach  the 
Word  there. 

Again,  when  they  assayed  to  go  into  Bithynia^ 
the  Spirit  suffered  them  not. 

Thus  Paul  might  have  said  like  Jacob  of  old. 

All  these  things  are  against  vie.     And  yet  how 

clearly  all  was  overruled  for  good.     Even  in  that 

unhappy  strife  God  made  the  wrath  of  man  to  praise 

<*       Him.     Instead  of  one  missionary  band  starting  out 

(217) 


2l8  NEW  TESTAMENT  CONVERSIONS. 

there  were  two,  and  instead  of  two  missionaries 
there  were  four.  It  was  during  these  disappoint- 
ments also  that  Paul  found  and  became  acquainted 
with  young  Timothy,  who  became  his  most  con- 
stant friend  and  helper  and  his  greatest  comfort. 
It  was  during  the  providential  detention  in  Galatia 
that  he  gathered  the  Churches  in  that  wild  region. 
And  had  it  not  been  for  that  we  would  probably 
not  have  had  that  important  and  instructive  epistle 
to  the  Galatians.  But  most  wonderful  and  best  of 
all  were  the  hindrances  and  refusals  to  work  in 
Asia  and  Bithynia.  That  work  was  to  be  done 
by  others.  Paul  had  a  more  important  present 
mission.  Therefore  came  that  remarkable  vision 
and  that  sad,  impressive  cry  from  that  man  of 
Macedonia. 

What  a  cry  that  was !  It  came  from  a  people 
that  had  tasted  world  empire,  and  had  been  left 
unsatisfied.  It  was  a  translation  into  words  of  that 
remarkable  scene,  when,  four  hundred  years  earlier, 
Alexander  had  returned  from  conquering  the 
world,  and  sat  down  on  the  seashore  and  wept  like 
a  child  because  there  were  no  other  worlds  to  con- 
quer, and  his  heart  longings  were  not  satisfied. 
That  Macedonian  cry!  It  came  from  a  people 
that  had  enjoyed  the  civilization,  and  culture,  and 


CONVERSION   OF   LYDIA.  219 

art,  and  science  of  Greece  in  her  palmiest  days.  It 
came  from  a  people  that  was  now  enjoying  the 
splendor,  and  renown,  and  law,  and  order,  and  in- 
dulgence of  Rome.  And  still  that  people  cried  for 
help!  They  asked  it  of  a  poor  and  obscure 
preacher  of  the  despised  religion  of  the  cross! 
What  a  cry  was  that,  from  such  a  people  to  such  a 
helper!  Oh  yes,  it  is  the  same  cry  that  has 
sounded  down  the  ages.  We  hear  its  echoes  in 
the  corridors  of  the  centuries.  It  is  borne  across 
the  waters,  and  from  the  western  prairies,  and 
ranches,  and  mining  camps  to-day.  It  is  the  old 
cry  from  the  world  to  the  Church.  It  is  the  sad 
wail  that  comes  from  the  tenement  districts,  from 
alleys  and  courts,  from  the  abodes  of  sin  and  suffer- 
ing in  garret  and  cellar,  from  every  Christless 
home  and  heart.  Come  and  help  us!  We  cannot 
help  ourselves.  The  world  cannot  help  us.  Its 
money,  its  friendships  and  flatteries,  its  pleasures 
and  indulgences,  cannot  still  these  longings.  We 
need  what  the  Church  alone  can  bring.  We  need 
the  living  Gospel  of  a  living  Redeemer.  Without 
that  Gospel  in  the  home  and  in  the  heart, 

"  What  am  I  but  a  child  crying  in  the  night, 
What  am  I  but  a  child  crjing  for  a  light." 


220  NEW  TESTAMENT  CONVERSIONS. 

Paul  and  his  companions  were  not  disobedient  to 
the  heavenly  vision.  They  hastened  across  the 
gulf.  They  assuredly  gathered  that  the  Lord  had 
called  them  to  carry  the  Gospel  into  Europe.  They 
went  to  the  important  city  of  Philippi.  For  sev- 
eral days  Paul,  and  Silas,  and  Timothy,  and  Luke, 
walked  up  and  down  in  that  strange  city.  They 
found  very  few  Jews.  There  was  not  even  a  syna- 
gogue. The  people  seemed  not  even  to  know  that 
there  was  a  God  of  heaven  and  earth.  The  mis- 
sionaries found  no  place  or  opportunity  to  begin 
their  work.  They  learned  that  there  was  a  place 
of  prayer  by  the  river-side,  just  outside  of  the  city, 
where  a  few  devout  persons  were  in  the  habit  of 
meeting  on  the  Sabbath  day.  Thither  the  four 
missionaries  went.  They  found  a  few  women, 
some  Jews,  and  some  proselytes.  What  a  congre- 
gation !  What  a  place  to  begin  missionary  work 
in  Europe !  But  the  missionaries  did  not  despise 
the  day  of  small  things.  They  sat  down  and  spake 
unto  the  womeii.  They  preached  to  them  as  Jesus 
preached  to  the  woman  at  Jacob's  well.  And  that 
was  the  first  preaching  of  the  Gospel  in  Europe. 
Its  immediate  result  was  what  we  will  now 
consider: 


CONVERSION   OF  LYDIA.  221 

THE  CONVERSION   OF  LYDIA. 

We  consider  _/?rj-/,  what  she  was  before  her  con- 
version : 

By  nationality  she  was  not  a  Jewess.  She  was 
of  the  city  of  Thyatira.  This  city  was  in  the 
Roman  province  of  Asia,  in  which  these  mission- 
aries were  forbidden  to  preach.  Ancient  histori- 
ans inform  us  that  the  inhabitants  of  the  district 
about  Thyatira  were  so  eorrupt  in  their  manners 
that  the  fact  had  become  proverbial. 

In  this  place  and  among  these  people  Lydia  had 
been  born  and  brought  up. 

As  she  was  by  birth  a  Gentile,  she  was,  as  a 
matter  of  course,  an  idolatress  in  religion.  From 
her  childhood  she  had  been  trained  in  the  abomi- 
nations and  superstitions  of  heathenism. 

By  occupation  she  was  a  merchantess,  a  seller  of 
purple.  There  was  a  guild  of  dyers,  an  associa- 
tion offhnerchants,  such  as  we  would  call  a  union, 
or  a  trust,  in  Thyatira,  whose  goods  were  much 
sought  after  everywhere.  Lydia  was  probably  a 
member  of  this  guild,  and  had  a  branch  or  an 
agency  at  Philippi. 

As  to  her  circumstances,  Lydia  was  what  in 
those  days  would  be  called  rich.  She  had  a  house 
in  Philippi  that  was  large  enough  to  accommodate 


222  NRW   TESTAMENT  CONVERSIONS. 

the  four  missionaries  in  addition  to  her  household. 
She  had  means  enough  to  entertain  these  men 
comfortably  while  they  were  in  the  city,  and  she 
doubtless  was  one  of  those  Philippians  whose  lib- 
erality afterwards  helped  to  support  Paul  in  his  old 
age  and  imprisonment,  and  also  ministered  to  the 
poor  saints  at  Jerusalem. 

Now  all  these  things  were  certainly  not  calcu- 
lated to  predispose  her  to  give  serious  attention  to 
religion.  They  were  rather  all  hindrances  to  a 
pious  disposition.  Her  Gentile  birth  and  heathen 
training  were  against  her.  Her  occupation  would 
tend  to  fill  her  more  and  more  with  the  cares  of 
this  life,  and  make  her  more  and  more  worldly. 
The  deceitfulness  of  riches  would  exert  its  wither- 
ing influence  on  her  and  make  it  hard  to  enter  the 
kingdom  of  God. 

And  yet,  in  spite  of  all  this  unfavorable  environ- 
ment, L/ydia  had  made  certain  advances  towards  a 
better  life.  Instead  of  demoralizing  more  and  more, 
she  had  improved  herself.  She  had  renounced 
heathenism.  She  had  learned  about  Jehovah, 
the  God  of  Israel,  the  Maker  of  heaven  and  earth. 
She  had  accepted  the  teachings  concerning  the 
true  God.  As  far  as  she  knew  Him,  she  believed 
in  and  .worshipped  Him.  It  was  in  such  a  state 
and  condition  that  Paul  found  her. 


CONVERSION   OF   LYDIA.  223 

We  inquire  secondly^  What  did  she  do  towards 
her  own  conversion? 

From  what  we  are  told   further  on  about  lier 
heart  being  opened^  it  is  clear  that  her  heart  was 
originally  closed  against  divine  Grace.     And  this- 
is  indeed  the  sad  truth  as  to  every  heart  so  long  as- 
it  is  in  its  natural  and  unrenewed  state.     The  un- 
regenerate  heart  is  ' '  deceitful  above  all  things  a7id 
desperately   wicked.''^     Out   of    it    proceed    '"''evil 
thoiLghts^  mtu'ders^   adulteries^  fornications^   thefts^, 
false  witness^  blasphemies.''^     ''''Every  imagination! 
of  the  thoughts  of  man''  s  heart  is  only  evil  continu- 
ally.''''    The  natural  man  has  his   '''' tinder  standing 
darkened^ "    ''''is  alienated  from   the   life   of  God 
through  the  ignorance  that  is  in  him^  because  of  the 
blindness  of  his  heart. ' '     He    ' '  receiveth   not  the 
things  of  the  Spirit  of  God  ....   neither  can  he 
know  them^ ' '     He   is  ' '  in    darkness^ ' '      *  ''dead  iji 
trespasses  and  sins.''''     His  heart   is  a    ''''heart  of 
stone. ' ' 

It  is  of  course  utterly  out  of  the  question  that 
the  sinner  should  by  his  own  reason  or  strength  be 
able  to  change  a  heart  so  wicked,  corrupt,  blind, 
stony,  dead.  If  that  heart  is  to  be  opened, 
changed  and  quickened,  it  will  certainly  be  not  by 
human   ''^ might  nor  by  power ^  but  by  7?iy  Spirit^ 


224  NEW  TESTAMENT  CONVERSIONS. 

saith  the  Lord^ ' '  for  ' '  no  mail  can  say  that  Jesus  is 
the  Lord^  btit  by  the  Holy  Ghost. ' ' 

And  yet  Lydia  did  something  towards  her  con- 
version. 

What  did  she  do? 

First,  she  heard  the  Word.  She  had  heard  it 
from  the  Jews.  Through  it  she  had  learned  the  sin 
of  idolatry,  and  the  doctrine  of  the  true  God.  She 
attended  the  public  worship  of  the  believers  in  the 
true  God.  She  went  to  church  with  them.  She 
associated  herself  with  them  in  their  worship  and 
hearing  of  the  Word.  Secondly,  she  entered 
heartily  into  that  worship.  She  worshipped.  She 
was  not  a  disinterested  looker  on.  She  prayed 
herself  as  best  she  could.  Thirdly,  when  Paul 
came  and  spoke  the  New  Testament  Word,  the 
sweet  and  precious  Gospel  of  Jesus  Christ,  she  at- 
tended unto  the  things  which  were  spoken  of  Paul. 
She  gave  attention;  she  listened  eagerly;  she  lost 
not  a  word;  she  took  it  all  in. 

Thus  much  the  sinner  can  do.  He  can  seek 
out  and  associate  with  God's  people.  He  can  go 
with  them  to  church.  He  can  hear  the  Word  of 
God.  He  can  hear  that  Word  attentively,  and 
when  that  Word  stirs  up  longings,  he  can  express 
them,  even  if  in  inarticulate,  halting  and  broken 


CONVERSION  OF  I.YDIA.  225 

petitions.     This  is  his  part  in  the  work.     Thus 
much  did  Lydia  do  towards  her  conversion. 

We  inquire  thirdly^  what  did  God  do  in  her  con- 
version ? 

The  simple  words  of  the  record  are,  '■^ whose 
heart  the  Lord  opened. ' ' 

We  have  seen  certain  seeds  encased  in  such  close- 
and  hard  pods  that  one  would  wonder  how  they 
would  ever  open.  But  in  the  gentle  rains  of  early 
autumn  those  pods  would  become  soaked,  as  little 
by  little  the  moisture  worked  its  way  in,  until: 
gradually  they  would  spread,  and  the  seams  would' 
open  and  let  the  full  drops  fall  on  the  seeds  within. 

We  have  seen  the  rose-bud  hanging  on  its  stem 
enfolded  tightly  in  its  green  casings.  But  as  the 
sunshine  would  fall  upon  that  bud,  as  its  gentle 
warmth  would  work  its  way  inward,  reaching  fold 
after  fold,  the  shriveled  leaves  would  unfold  and 
spread  until  the  outer  casement  was  broken,  and 
by  and  by  the  full  blown  rose  in  all  its  queenly 
beauty  drank  in  the  full  rays  of  the  sun,  and  gave 
out  its  rich  and  odorous  perfume.  And  thus  was 
the  heart  of  Lydia  opened. 

How  did  the  Lord  open  it?  Through  His  Word. 
That  Word  of  which  He  says:  ''''As  the  rain  cojneth 
down  and  the  snow  from  heaven^  and  returneth  not 


2a6  NEW  TESTAMENT  CONVERSIONS. 

thither^  but  watereth  the  earth  and  maketh  it  bring 
forth  and  bud^  that  it  may  give  seed  to  the  sower 
and  bread  to  the  eater^  so  shall  my  Word  be  that 
goeth  forth  out  of  my  7tioiith :  It  shall  not.  return 
unto  Tne  void;  but  it  shall  accomplish  that  which  I 
please^  and  it  shall  prosper  in  the  thing  whereto  I 
sent  ity  Again  He  says:  "J/y  doctrine  shall  drop 
as  the  rain^  my  speech  shall  distil  as  the  dew^  as  the 
small  rain  upon  the  tender  herb^  and  as  the  showers 
upon  the  grassy  Thus  had  the  Lord  opened  her 
heart  through  the  Word.  Through  it  the  stm  of 
righteousness  did  rise  upon  her  with  healing  on  His 
wings. 

That  Word  had  come  to  her  first  as  the  law. 
She  had  learned  first  from  the  Old  Testament,  of 
which  the  law  was  best  known  and  first  taught  to 
proselytes.  Through  this  the  prevenient  or  pre- 
paratory Grace  of  God  had  reached  her  heart. 
This  law  taught  her  to  see,  and  made  her  feel,  her 
need.  It  awakened  and  intensified  in  her  a  long- 
ing for  salvation.  The  law  became  her  school- 
master to  bring  her  to  Christ — /.  ^.,  her  leader  to 
take  her  by  the  hand  and  lead  her  towards  Christ. 

And  now  when  this  preparatory  work  had  been 
softening  and  making  ready  the  heart,  Paul  brought 
the  life-giving  Gospel.     And  through  this  power 


CONVERSION  OF  LYDIA.  227 

of  God  icnto  salvation  the  Lord  more  fully  opened 
her  heart.  This  Gospel  not  only  showed  her  and 
instructed  her  about  that  Jesus  who  shall  save  His 
people  from  their  sins;  but  this  Gospel  brought 
that  very  Saviour  home  to  her  heart.  '■''Say  not  in 
thine  hearty  zvho  shall  ascend  into  heaven^  that  is  to 
bring  Christ  down  from  above^  or  who  shall  descend 
into  the  deep^  that  is  to  bring  Christ  up  again  from 
the  dead.''''  For  "'the  Word  is  nigh  thee  .  .  .  that 
is  the  Word  of  faith  which  we  preachy  Thus 
Christ  comes  through  the  written  and  preached 
Word,  through  it  He  opens  the  heart  and  enables 
the  sinner  to  open  it,  as  He  says:  ''''Behold^  I  stand 
at  the  door  and  knock ;  if  any  man  hear  my  voice 
and  open  the  door^  I  will  come  in  to  him.  It  is  by 
hearing  His  voice  as  it  sounds  in  His  Word,  that 
He  opens  in  such  a  way  that  in  one  sense  the 
sinner  opens,  with  the  strength  that  comes  in  hear- 
ing. 

But  Christ  also  comes  through  the  sacramental 
or  visible  Word.  '  ''Know  ye  not  that  as  many  of 
yon  as  were  baptized  into  fesics  Christ  were  bap- 
tized into  His  death  f''  ''''For  as  7nany  of  you  as 
have  been  baptized  into  Christ  have pnt  on  Christ.'''' 
This  sacramental  Word  concerning  which  Paul, 
who  everywhere  speaks  of  it  in  such  strong  terms 


228  NEW  TESTAMENT  CONVERSIONS. 

as  a  positive  bearer  of  Grace,  must  have  instructed 
her  in  his  discourse,  Lydia  also  desired.  Paul  ad- 
ministered to  her  then  and  there  this  Divine  means 
of  Grace.  Through  it  her  heart  was  still  more 
fully  opened,  and  Christ  was  brought  more  fully 
into  that  heart;  and  thus  Lydia  was  converted. 

We  might  here  refer  to  the  question  in  passing. 
Why  are  the  individual  baptisms  mentioned  in  the 
New  Testament  all  those  of  adults,  and  why  is 
"there  no  distinct  and  specific  mention  of  infant 
baptisms?  Waiving  here  the  question  of  the  four 
family  baptisms  that  we  have  recorded,  besides 
four  others  that  we  can  legitimately  infer,  we 
answer  as  follows:  First.  The  labors  of  the  apostles 
were  missionary  labors,  and  not  the  labors  of  settled 
pastors  in  well  established  congregations.  As 
missionaries,  they  had  to  begin  with  the  parents 
and  adults.  When  these  were  converted  they  were 
baptized,  and  if  parents,  their  households.  The 
same  procedure  is  necessarily  followed  by  our  mis- 
sionaries at  the  present  day.  Their  first  baptisms 
are  adult  baptisms.  They  would  not  baptize  the 
children  while  under  the  control  of  heathen  or  un- 
believing parents.  It  would  be  as  legitimate  to 
infer  and  try  to  prove  that  our  missionaries  do  not 
believe    in    infant    baptism    because    they   report 


CONVERSION   OF   LYDIA.  229 

annually  so  many  adult  baptisms,  as  to  conclude 
that  the  apostles  disbelieved  in  infant  baptism 
because  we  have  the  record  of  their  adult  baptisms. 
Secondly.  And  this  is  an  important  point.  Even 
if  we  should  grant — as  we  by  no  means  do — that 
there  is  no  account  of  infant  baptisms  in  the  Bible, 
where  is  there  a  single  instance  of  the  baptism  of 
an  adult  who  had  grown  up  in  a  Christian  house- 
hold? Such  an  instance  would  be  parallel  to  the 
adult  baptisms  in  the  Baptist  church  of  to-day. 
But  there  is  none.  Every  single  adult  baptism 
mentioned  is  that  of  a  convert  from  Judaism  or 
heathenism.  Such  adult  baptism  we  also  practice. 
But  why  is  there  no  instance  of  the  baptism  of  one 
grown  up  in  a  believing  family?  It  was  more 
than  thirty  years  from  the  death  of  Christ  to  the 
death  of  Paul— plenty  of  time  for  the  children  of 
his  first  converts  to  become  adults.  Were  they 
baptized?  When?  The  record  tells  us  that  when 
parents  were  converted  and  baptized,  their  house- 
holds were  baptized.  Bengel  pertinently  asks: 
"Who  can  believe  that  in  so  many  families  there 
was  no  infant?  And  that  the  Jews  who  were  wont 
to  circumcise,  and  the  Gentiles  who  purified  them 
by  washings,  did  not  also  present  them  for  bap- 
tism?"    No,   no;   the  idea  of  excluding  children 


230  NEW  TESTAMENT  CONVERSIONS. 

from  the  covenant  blessings  is  contradictory  to  the 
whole  scheme  of  redemption  and  to  the  inmost 
spirit  of  the  Gospel.  God  Himself  ordained  infant 
membership  in  His  church.  He  alone  has  the 
right  to  revoke  it.  He  has  never  done  so,  there- 
fore it  stands.  Infants  had  a  place  in  the  old 
covenant.  The  new  is  not  narrower  but  wider. 
The  promise  was  to  Lydia  and  to  her  children,  if 
she  had  any.     Her  household  was  baptized. 

We  notice  briefly  in  conclusion,  The  Fruits  of 
Lydia's  Conversion.  The  first  fair  fruit  of  that 
change  of  heart,  was  a  change  in  her  home.  It 
became  henceforth  only  really  worthy  of  that 
sacred  name,  home.  A  Christian  home  is  a  type 
of  heaven.  Outside  of  a  sanctuary  of  the  Most 
High,  there  is  no  spot  on  earth  more  happy,  holy 
and  heavenly,  than  a  Christian  home.  There  is  a 
''^church  in  the  housed  There  the  religion  of  the 
blessed  Saviour  permeates  the  whole  atmosphere. 
There  the  Word  of  God  dwells  richly.  There  are 
altars  of  prayer,  and  closets  for  prayer.  There 
Jesus  is  a  daily  and  well-known  Guest.  There  the 
children,  baptized  into  Christ,  are  nourished  with 
the  sincere  milk  of  the  Word,  and  grow  thereby. 
In  such  a  home,  parents  and  children,  all  children 
of  one  Father,  kneel  at  one  altar,  with  the  same 


CONVKRSION  OF   LYDIA.  23 1 

trust,   the  same   love,   the   same   hope,   the  same 
Lord. 

The  religion  that  God  ordained  in  the  old  cove- 
nant was  essentially  a  family  religion.  The  relig- 
ion of  the  new  covenant  is  the  same.  Where  father 
or  mother  are  converted,  one  of  the  fruits  of  that 
conversion  is  a  change  in  the  home  life.  Such  was 
one  of  the  fruits  of  Lydia's  conversion. 

Another  fruit  of  that  conversion  was  that  she  at 
once  began  to  cultivate  a  true  Christian  hospitality. 
This  also  was  a  New  Testament  fruit  from  an  Old 
Testament  seed.  Hospitality  was  practiced  by  the 
patriarchs  and  saints  of  old.  They  were  not  for- 
getful to  entertain  strangers,  and  thereby  some  had 
entertained  angels  unawares.  This  Christian  grace 
Lydia  now  cultivated. 

Luke,  one  of  the  four  missionaries,  writes:  ''''She 
besought  us^  sayings  ^f  y^  have  judged  me  to  be  , 
faithful  to  the  Lord^  come  into  m,y  house  and  abide 
there.  And  she  constrained  tcs.'''*  She  took  in  the 
four  missionaries.  She  entertained  and  provided 
for  them  while  they  were  in  the  city.  She  freely, 
of  her  substance,  ministered  to  their  necessities. 

And  what  a  gain  it  must  have  been  to  her!  She 
furnished  the  missionaries  a  home  and  meat  and 
drink.     They  gave  to  her  the  bread  and  water  of 


232  NEW  TESTAMENT  CONVERSIONS. 

life,  and  thus  nourished  her  for  life  eternal  in  the 
heavenly  home.  Thus  was  she  further  instructed 
and  strengthened  in  the  new  life.  Thus  was  she 
more  and  more  sanctified  through  the  truth  of  God's 
Word. 

And  this  was  the  beginning  of  the  evangeliza- 
tion of  Europe.  Here  is  encouragement  for  mis- 
sionaries and  ministers.  Here  is  inspiration  for 
laborers  in  new  and  hard  fields.  Here  is  hope  for 
small  congregations.  Let  ministers  be  faithful 
like  Paul,  let  converts  be  true  and  devoted  like 
Lydia,  and  the  Word  wili  grow  and  multiply. 


SERMON  XV. 


THE  CONVERSION  OF  THE  PHILIPPIAN 
JAILOR. 

Acts  xvi.  25-34. 


Ads  xvi.  ^J-J/.  And  at  midnight  Paul  and  Silas  prayed,  and 
sang  praises  unto  God  :  and  the  prisoners  heard  them. 

And  suddenly  there  was  a  great  earthquake,  so  that  the  found- 
ations of  the  prison  were  shaken :  and  immediately  all  the 
doors  were  opened,  and  every  one's  bands  were  loosed. 

And  the  keeper  of  the  prison  awaking  out  of  his  sleep,  and 
seeing  the  prison  doors  open,  he  drew  out  his  sword,  and  would 
have  killed  himself,  supposing  that  the  prisoners  had  been  fled. 

But  Paul  cried  with  a  loud  voice,  saying,  Do  thyself  no  harm: 
■  for  we  are  all  here. 

Then  he  called  for  a  light,  and  sprang  in,  and  came  trembling, 
and  fell  down  before  Paul  and  Silas, 

And  brought  them  out,  and  said.  Sirs,  what  must  I  do  to  be 
saved  ? 

And  they  said.  Believe  on  the  Lord  Jesus  Christ,  and  thou 
shalt  be  saved,  and  thy  house. 

And  they  spake  unto  him  the  Word  of  the  Lord,  and  to  all 
that  were  in  his  house. 

And  he  took  them  the  same  hour  of  the  night,  and  washed 
their  stripes;  and  was  baptized,  he  and  all  his,  straightway. 

And  when  he  had  brought  them  into  his  house,  he  set  meat 
before  them,  and  rejoiced,  believing  in  God  with  all  his  house. 


SERMON   XV. 

After  the  Gospel  had  gained  its  first  foot-hold 
in  Europe  through  Paul's  speaking  the  Word  to  a 
few  devout  women,  gathered  for  prayer  at  the  river 
side,  just  outside  of  Philippi,  the  house  of  Lydia, 
the  first  European  convert,  became  the  headquar- 
ters of  the  new  cause.  Paul  and  Silas  and  Timothy 
and  Luke  made  that  house  their  home  during  their 
stay  in  the  city.  For  many  days  they  prosecuted 
their  work  with  peace  and  prosperity.  They  still 
preached  to  and  prayed  with  the  people  who  met 
at  that  river  side. 

But  trouble  soon  arose.  The  kingdom  of  God 
cannot  be  built  without  opposition  from  the  king- 
dom of  darkness.  The  prince  of  this  world  would 
not  stand  idly  by  and  see  the  Gospel  gain  a  perma- 
nent footing  in  Europe.  His  ingenuity  and  power 
must  be  employed  to  kill  this  new  life  in  its  be- 
ginning. The  devil  uses  many  and  various  means. 
He  is  fertile  in  resources.  He  is  cunning,  crafty 
and  full  of  guile. 

At  Paphos  he  had  withstood  and  fought  against 
(235) 


236  NEW  TESTAMENT  CONVERSIONS. 

Paul  openly.  Paul  had  met,  resisted  and  routed 
him.  At  Philippi  he  tries  a  new  plan.  He  had 
failed  to  frighten  as  a  roaring  lion.  He  will  now 
flatter  as  an  angel  of  light. 

For  many  days  a  certain  damsel  possessed  with 
a  spirit  of  divination,  /.  <?.,  an  evil  spirit  by  which 
she  charmed,  told  fortunes  and  astounded  the  peo- 
ple, followed  the  apostles.  In  the  hearing  of  the 
people  who  gathered  to  hear  the  apostles,  she  con- 
tinually uttered  this  remarkable  cry:  '"''These  iiie7i 
are  the  servants  of  the  most  high  God^  which  show 
unto  us  the  way  of  salvation ! ' '  Noble  words ! 
Blessed  testimony  ! 

But  why  should  an  evil  spirit  utter  such  senti- 
ments ?  It  may  have  bqen  from  constraint.  The 
evil  spirit  may  have  recognized  in  that  Christ, 
whom  these  servants  of  the  most  high  God 
preached,  their  Master  and  Judge.  Like  the  de- 
moniac of  our  Saviour's  time,  who  cried  out  in 
terror  before  Him,  and  confessed  Him  to  be  the 
Christ  the  Son  of  the  lyiving  God,  and  acknowl- 
edged that  He  would  one  day  torment  them  as 
their  judge;  so  the  evil  spirit  in  this  poor  maiden 
may  have  cried  out  and  confessed  in  terror. 

But  it  may  also  be  that  this  evil  spirit  offered  the 
Apostles  his  help  and  co-operation.     It  may  be  that 


THE  PHILIPPIAN  JAILOR.  237 

it  was  his  dark  design  to  help  along  the  preachers, 
to  preach  the  Gospel  himself,  in  order  to  draw  them 
into  a  league  with  himself,  and  afterwards  easily 
overthrow  their  whole  work.  No  doubt  he  has  in 
this  way  beguiled  and  ruined  many  a  Gospel  min- 
ister and  many  a  congregation. 

But,  whatever  may  have  been  the  motive  of  that 
cry,  Paul  would  no  more  accept  testimony  to  the 
truth  or  any  kind  of  help  from  the  devil,  than 
would  Christ  his  Master.  ''^  Paul^  being  grieved^ 
turned  and  said  to  the  spirit^  I  co?nma7id  thee^  in  the 
name  of  Jesus  ChHst^  to  come  out  of  her.  And  he 
came  oiit  the  same  hour. ' ' 

Now  this  damsel  was  a  slave  girl.  She  was  the 
property  of  her  masters.  They  had  been  making 
money  out  of  her  soothsaying  and  divining.  They 
saw  that  the  hope  of  their  gains  ivas  gone.  They 
loudly  and  vehemently  accused  the  Apostles  before 
the  magistrates  as  law-breakers  and  disturbers  of 
the  public  peace.  Pretending  to  act  in  the  interest 
of  law  and  order,  they  inflamed  the  multitude  and 
the  magistrates  against  the  preachers.  Mob  law 
was  invoked.  Without  trial  or  sentence  the  Apos- 
tles were  scourged,  thrown  into  the  inner  prison  or 
dungeon,  their  feet  fastened  in  the  stocks,  a  kind 
of  a  foot-rack,  forcing  the  feet  apart  and  holding 


238  NEW  TESTAMENT  CONVERSIONS. 

them  in  a  vise-like  grip.  And  thus  with  bruised 
and  bleeding  flesh,  quivering  with  pain,  without 
light  or  air,  or  food  or  drink,  were  the  sufferers  left 
for  the  night.  What  a  night  was  before  them! 
Little  did  they  know  that  it  was  to  be  a  night  of 
triumph  and  conquest  for  them.  And  yet,  so  it 
turned  out.     It  witnessed  the  jailor' s  conversion. 

In  studying  that  remarkable  conversion,  we  look 
first  at  the  jailor  himself,  and  his  environment. 

We  know  little  about  him  as  a  man.  Of  his 
former  life  we  know  nothing.  We  only  know  that 
he  was  a  heathen  in  that  corrupt  and  cruel  age. 

His  office  was  a  menial  one.  Even  now  it  is  the 
exception  to  find  a  refined  and  humane  person  oc- 
cupying the  position  of  jailor. 

But  prison  life  and  rule  is  vastly  different  from 
what  it  was  in  the  dark  days  of  heathenism.  The 
religion  of  Jesus  Christ  has  thrown  its  softening, 
sympathizing,  and  refining  influences  even  into  the 
gloom  and  degradation  of  prison  life.  There  is 
still  much  room  for  improvement.  Christian  prin- 
ciples do  not  always  prevail  in  so-called  Christian 
cities.  There  is  too  much  heathenism  in  too  many 
hearts  and  lives.  But,  with  all  this,  it  is  vastly 
better  than  it  was.  And  even  where  Christian 
principles  are  professedly  disbelieved,  their  in- 
fluence makes  itself  felt. 


THE   PHIUPPIAN  JAILOR.  239 

In  the  days  of  Rome's  declining  glory,  as  a  rule, 
the  low,  corrupt  and  heartless  were  selected  as 
jailors.  Even  if  upright  and  humane  before,  the 
exercise  of  their  office  would  tend  to  degrade 
them.  They  worked  and  lived  with  the  vile  and 
abandoned.  Day  by  day  they  would  see  scenes  of 
degradation  and  brutality.  They  were  compelled 
to  hear  profanity  and  vulgarity.  They  would  be 
exasperated  by  the  conduct  of  those  under  their 
care.  They  were  compelled  to  be  inhuman  and 
cruel.  If  not  naturally  without  feeling  and  hard- 
hearted, they  would  perforce  become  more  and 
more  so.  To  this  class  the  Philippian  belonged. 
Such  were  his  occupation  and  associations.  Surely 
all  these  things  were  against  him. 

His  environment  gave  little  promise  of  a  better 
life.  He  would  be  considered  a  rather  hopeless 
subject  on  which  to  expend  missionary  effort.  It 
is  not  the  least  of  the  glories  of  the  young  Church 
that  she  won  so  many  of  her  converts  from  the 
ranks  of  those  who  seemed  to  be  in  every  way  pre- 
disposed to  wickedness  and  unbelief.  It  is  no 
small  testimony  to  the  power  of  the  Gospel  that  it 
can  and  in  every  age  does  reach,  convert,  and 
entirely  change  the  hearts  and  lives  of  such  per- 
sons. 


240  NEW  TESTAMENT  CONVERSIONS. 

We  desire  to  notice  secondly^  that  conversion 
itself.  In  studying  this  it  is  well  to  notice  what 
preceded  it  and  likely  prepared  the  way.  We  re- 
call the  significant  cry  of  the  possessed  damsel: 
''''These  men  are  the  servants  of  the  most  high  God^ 
which  show  nnto  us  the  zv ay  of  salvation ^  This 
cry  had  been  publicly  uttered  for  many  days,  by 
one  notorious  in  the  city.  Quite  naturally  it  be- 
came the  talk  of  the  town.  The  jailor  also  would 
hear  about  it.  Questions  would  be  asked,  "Who 
is  that  most  high  Godf''  "What  is  that  salvation^ 
and  what  that  way  which  these  strange  messengers 
proclaim?" 

Paul  had,  by  a  word  in  the  name  of  Him  whom 
they  preached,  driven  out  the  spirit.  The  girl 
had  become  quiet  and  rational.  What  did  it  all 
meftn? 

The  principal  preachers  of  this  new  way  of  salva- 
tion had  been  rudely  and  illegally  arretted,  dragged 
before  the  city  magistrates,  condemned  without  a 
trial,  stripped  of  their  clothing  and  cruelly  beaten 
with  rods.  Under  all  this  abuse  and  torture  it 
seems  that  the  victims  uttered  no  word  of  complaint 
or  malediction. 

Faint  and  bruised  and  bleeding,  they  were  given 
into  the  custody  of  the  jailor,  who,  it  seems,  wit- 


THE   PHILIPPIAN  JAILOR.  24T 

nessed  the  whole  violent  procedure.  He  was 
charged  to  keep  them  safely.  When  he  violently 
tJiT-iist  them  into  the  inner  prison  and  made  their 
feet  fast  in  the  cruel  stocks,  they  did  not  curse 
him,  as  he  probably  expected.  Their  whole  de- 
meanor must  have  impressed  him  deeply.  He  had 
never  handled  such  prisoners  before. 

Leaving  them  thus  in  their  misery  and  agony, 
the  jailor  went  to  bed.  Now,  if  the  man  had  an)'- 
thought  and  feeling  at  all,  what  would  be  more 
natural  than  that  he  should  lie  down  thinking  of 
these  strange  men,  their  strange  conduct  and  their 
strange  work  in  the  city?  And  so  he  went  to 
sleep  with  strange  and  new  thoughts  and  feelings. 
And  in  that  sleep,  perchance  a  restless,  dreamy 
sleep,  what  dreams  he  may  have  had!  Judging 
from  the  sequel,  we  believe  that  prevenient  Grace 
was  at  work.  He  was  being  prepared  for  conver- 
sion. In  a  tragic  and  dramatic  way  was  that 
conversion  brought  to  a  crisis. 

The  two  notable  prisoners  meanwhile  were  sit- 
ting and  suffering  through  the  weary  hours.  And 
how  did  they  beguile  away  the  long  tedium  of  the 
night?  ''''At  midnight  Paul  and  Silas  prayed  and 
sang  praises  nnto  God.'*''  The  prisoners  heard 
them.     Never  before,  we  opine,  had  such  sounds 


242  NEW  TESTAMENT  CONVERSIONS. 

been  heard  in  that  place.  Those  cells  and  corridors 
were  wont  to  resound  with  curses  and  maledictions. 
If  ever  the  voice  of  song  had  been  heard  there,  it 
must  have  been  the  maudlin  mutterings  of  the 
ribald  wretch.  And  now  the  music  that  rises  and 
swells  through  those  sad  and  gloomy  cells,  at  that 
midnight  hour,  is  a  song  of  prayer  and  praise  to 
the  most  high  God. 

And  while  their  God  is  giving  to  these  martyrs 
songs  in  the  nighty  another  strange  event  occurs, 
no  doubt  as  an  answer  to  those  midnight  prayers 
and  praises.  The  foundations  of  the  old  prison 
begin  to  tremble  and  the  walls  begin  to  rock.  So 
violent  becomes  the  earthquake  that  the  chains  are 
loosed  from  the  prisoners,  the  stocks  fly  from 
their  feet,  and  the  doors  stand  wide  open!  Did 
they  stop  singing?  We  believe  not.  Why  should 
they,  when  they  recognized  heaven's  amen  to  their 
devotions? 

The  jailor  is  startled  from  his  fitful  slumbers. 
He  springs  up  frightened  and  almost  frenzied.  If 
the  singing  is  still  going  on,  he  neither  hears  nor 
heeds.  He  sees  the  open  doors.  He  believes  the 
prisoners  are  fled.  He  knows  his  life  will  have  to 
answer  for  their  escape.  Roman-like,  he  decides 
on  suicide.     He  draws  his  sword — but  is  arrested. 


THE   PHILIPPIAN  JAILOR.  243 

Paul  sees  or  hears  what  is  going  on.  He  calls  out 
in  a  clear  tone,  "Z>^  thyself  no  harm.^''  How 
much  is  in  these  words!  They  proclaim  the  whole 
aim  and  object  of  the  Gospel.  It  is  the  intent  and 
purpose  of  this  blessed  Gospel  of  the  Son  of  God  to 
keep  mankind  from  self-inflicted  harm  and  ruin. 
He  who  is  harmed  and  ruined  is  so  by  his  own. 
hand.  Whoever  perishes  under  the  sound  or  in 
reach  of  the  Gospel,  is  a  spiritual  suicide. 

"  We  ai-e  all  here.''''  We,  servants  of  the  most 
high  God,  would  not  fly,  because  we  are  under  our 
God's  protection,  and  fear  not  what  man  may  do 
unto  us.  The  other  prisoners  heard  our  prayers- 
and  praises.  They  see  the  answer.  They  desire 
to  remain  with  us.  The  language  of  their  hearts 
is  "  Thy  God  shall  be  my  God.''''  And  so  we  are  all 
here.  The  jailor  saw  the  influence  and  power  of 
these  servants  of  the  most  high  God. 

And  now  he  recalled  again  that  momentous  cry 
of  the  sooth-saying  damsel.  What  did  she  say? 
Who  are  these  men?  "Servants  of  the  most  high 
God."  And  how  were  they  treated?  And  how 
did  they  bear  it?  They  did  neither  abuse  nor  curse 
me.  Didn't  I  hear  them  singing?  And  they  keep 
all  these  prisoners  here,  though  the  doors  are 
wide  open.     Oh  yes!     They  must  be  messengers  of 


244  NEW  TESTAMENT  CONVERSIONS. 

the  Most  High.  And  what  am  I  over  against  these 
men?  How  have  I  ill-treated  them?  How  have 
they  suffered  at  my  hands?  What  a  wretch  I  am! 
Their  God  sent  this  earthquake.  He  will  take 
vengeance  on  me.  Whither  shall  I  fly?  But  hold! 
What  did  that  girl  say?  "  They  shozv  tmto  lis  the 
way  of  salvation.''''  Is  there  a  way  to  be  saved? 
Would  that  I  knew  it.  I'll  ask  them:  ^^Sz'fs,  zuhat 
must  I  do  to  be  saved  f''  I  am  lost.  I  want  to  be 
saved,  if  I  only  knew  how.  Tell  me.  What 
must  I  do?     I'll  do  anything. 

Thus,  we  judge,  was  conviction  doing  its  work 
in  his  heart.  Paul  answered  that  anxious  and 
momentous  question.  How  brief  his  answer!  And 
yjet  how  full!  Does  it  not  contain  the  very  marrow 
of  the  Gospel  ?  What  is  the  theme  and  import  of 
the  Gospel?  Is  it  not  this?  Llan  is  a  poor  lost 
and  condemned  sinner.  Jesus  Christ  came  into  the 
world  to  save  sinners.  He  offers  Himself  through 
His  Word  and  sacraments.  Wherever  thus  offered, 
the  one  great  fundamental,  all-conditioning  and 
damning  sin,  is  unbelief.  The  one  underlying, 
all-conditioning  condition  of  being  saved  'is  faith  in 
Christ.  And  all  this  is  embraced  in  Paul's  answer. 
And  then  Paul  goes  on  'and  speaks  to  him  and  his 
whole  household  the  Word  of  the  Lord. 


THE   PHILIPPIAN  JAILOR.  245 

He  thus  leads  that  now  tiirtimg  inquirer  on  into 
the  full  light  of  trust  and  assurance.  Taking  his 
own  brief  answer  to  the  jailor  for  a  text,  he  would 
naturally  go  on  and  instruct  him  further.  He 
would  instruct  him  about  the  Lord  Jesus  Christ, 
His  coming.  His  person  and  work.  He  would  ex- 
plain the  benefits  that  flow  from  that  atoning  work. 
He  would  show  how  the  Holy  Spirit  applies  those 
benefits  through  the  Word  and  Sacraments.  How 
that  by  these  rej)entance  is  wrought,  faith  begotten, 
and  Grace  imparted.  Thus  would  he  show  to  the 
inquirers  the  zvay  of  salvation.  In  pointing  out  the 
way,  he  would  be  leading  the  hearers  into  that 
way.  In  learning  about  Christ,  the  Word  would 
enable  those  who  rightly  heard,  to  knozu  Chnst 
and  the  fellowship  0/  His  suffering^  atid  the  power 
of  His  resurrection.  And  here  indeed  is  one  of  the 
chief  glories  of  the  Word  of  God.  It  not  only  tells 
about  salvation,  but  in  its  words  it  is  able  to  save 
the  soul. 

Paul  believed  strongly  in  the  Sacraments.  He 
had  such  implicit  faith  in  Christ,  that  he  had  faith 
in  everything  that  comes  from  the  hands  of  Christ. 

In  his  writings  he  lays  great  store  by  baptism, 
and  calls  it  "///^  washing  of  regeneration^  a?id  re- 
newing of  the  Holy  Ghost.'''' 


246  NEW  TESTAMENT  CONVERSIONS. 

He  would  naturally  instruct  the  jailor  and  his 
household  as  to  the  nature  and  benefits  of  this  holy 
sacrament.  They  accepted  the  instruction.  "//"^ 
was  baptized^  he  and  his^  straightway. ' ' 

And  thus  was  the  jailor  converted.  In  his  con- 
version we  can  clearly  trace  the  two  component 
elements,  penitence  and  faith.  His  trepidation, 
prostration  and  anxious  cry  show  a  deep-felt  ab- 
horrence of  self  and  sin.  His  desire  to  be  saved 
implies  a  confession  of  being  lost  and  being  help- 
less. His  penitence  was  deep  and  heart-felt.  It 
emerged  into  faith.  With  longing  heart  he  listened 
to  the  Word  of  the  Lord.  As  he  listened  he  was 
drawn.  His  heart  was  more  fully  opened.  He 
believed. 

Faith  came  by  hearing^  and  hearing  by  the  Word 
of  God.  It  was  a  peculiar,  and  in  some  respects  an 
extraordinary  conversion.  It  was  sudden  and 
strongly  marked.  There  was  something  of  a 
miraculous  agency  in  it.  It  was  in  part  hastened 
by  an  earthquake.  It  will  not  do  to  take  it  for  a 
general  model.  Those  who  want  to  be  converted 
just  as  the  jailor  was,  must  needs  have  an  earth- 
quake accompaniment.  Those  who  wish  to  be 
converted  exactly  as  Paul  was,  must  have  a  flash 
of  blinding  light  from  the  sky,  an  audible  voice. 


THE   PHILIPPIAN  JAILOR.  247 

and  a  visible  appearance  of  Jesus.  These  are  ex- 
traordinary and  miraculous  features.  They  were 
only  accompaniments.  They  did  not  carry  con- 
verting power.  That  was  carried  in  both  cases,  as 
it  is  in  every  case,  by  the  living  Word  of  God. 

The  jailor's  also  was  an  unusual  case.  He  was 
an  uncultured  man.  The  animal  naturally  pre- 
dominated over  the  intellectual.  He  would  be 
influenced  more  strongly  by  feeling  than  by  judg- 
ment, and  this  would  have  a  tendency  to  make  the 
change  more  or  less  violent  in  its  manifestations. 
Again,  the  contrast  between  his  former  life  and  the 
new  life  would  be  much  greater  than  in  the  case  of 
Lydia.  This  also  would  tend  to  make  his  a 
strongly  marked  conversion. 

There  are  sudden  and  strongly  marked  conver- 
sions still.  But  it  will  not  do  to  make  them  the 
rule.  They  ought  to  be  exceptions  in  the  Church. 
It  is  better  to  grow  up  like  Timothy  than  to  be 
converted  like  Paul.  It  is  far  better  to  be  filled 
with  the  Holy  Ghost  from  the  womb  than  to  be 
converted  like  the  jailor.  Inside  of  the  Church  the 
Samuels  and  Jeremiahs  and  Johns  and  Timothys 
ought  to  be  the  rule,  and  the  Sauls  and  jailors  the 
exception.  And  if  the  Church  had  not  drifted 
away  from  the  old  scriptural  doctrine  of  baptismal 


248  NEW  TESTAMENT  CONVERSIONS. 

Grace  and  a  baptismal  covenant,  such  would  still  be 
•the  case.  May  the  lyord  help  us  to  ^'' stand  in  the 
ways  and  see^  and  ask  for  the  old  paths^  where  is 
the  good  way^  ajtd  walk  therein. ' ' 

We  can  only  refer  briefly  to  the  fruits  of  the 
jailor's  conversion: 

We  notice  first^  that  here,  as  in  Lydia's  case,  he 
was  baptized  a7id  all  his.  It  was  another  house- 
hold baptism.  The  conversion  of  the  head  of  the 
house  brought  the  religion  of  Christ  into  the 
family.  This  is  a  blessed  fruit  of  a  true  conver- 
sion. Let  the  heart  of  father  or  mother  be 
changed,  and  the  home  will  be  changed.  We 
know  of  a  young  man  who  said  with  bitterness, 
"Yes,  my  father  can  pray  at  prayer-meeting,  but 
I  never  heard  him  pray  at  home."  We  doubted 
that  father's  religion.  ^^ Let  them  learn  first  to 
show  piety  at  home.'''^  When  Zaccheus  was  con- 
verted, salvation  came  to  his  house.  So  to  the 
jailor's. 

A  secojid  fruit.  He  rejoiced^  believing  with  his 
whole  house.  Faith  brings  joy  into  the  heart  and 
into  the  home.  There  is  no  joy  like  the  Chris- 
tian's joy.  It  banishes  long  faces,  and  heavy 
hearts,  and  complaining  lips.  It  enables  Paul  and 
Silas  to  sing  with  glad  hearts,  though  their  backs 


THE   PHILIPPIAN  JAILOR.  249 

are  swollen  and  torn,  and  their  feet  are  fast  in  the 
stocks.  It  brings  a  new  joy  into  the  heart  of  the 
formerly  rough  jailor,  and  his  home  becomes  radi- 
ant with  gladness.  True,  abiding  joy  is  a  fruit  of 
true  conversion. 

Again:  That  formerly  cruel  man  became  merci- 
ful. He  took  those  prisoners  that  same  hour  of  the 
night  and  zvashed  their  stripes.  Surely  he  had 
never  done  this  before! 

He  had  screwed  the  ankles  of  these  men  into  the 
cruel  stocks,  and  left  them  in  their  pain  and 
anguish,  a  few  hours  ago.  Now  he  gently,  with 
his  own  hands,  bathes  the  cuts  and  bruises,  and  al- 
lays their  burning.  What  a  change  was  here! 
He  had  obtained  mercy,  and  he  willingly  exercises 
mercy. 

The  spirit  of  Christ  is  a  spirit  of  mercy  and 
good-will.  It  feeds  the  hungry  and  clothes  the 
naked,  and  ministers  to  the  sick  and  imprisoned. 
It  does  it  in  Jesus'  name  and  for  Jesus'  sake.  The 
world  knew  nothing  of  mercy  to  unfortunates  and 
prisoners  till  it  learned  to  know  Christ.  The  ex- 
ercise of  mercy,  pure  and  disinterested,  is  a  fruit  of 
conversion. 

KwA  filially.,  he  showed  hospitality.  He  brought 
the  prisoners  into  his  house  and  set  meat  before 


250  NEW  TESTAMENT  CONVERSIONS. 

them.  Think  of  a  Roman  jailor  spreading  his  own 
table  in  the  night,  and  inviting  his  prisoners  to  sit 
down  and  partake  of  his  meat!  Surely  such  a 
thing  had  never  been  heard  of  before.  He  had  left 
those  two  prisoners  in  the  evening  in  their  agony 
and  fever  without  even  a  drink  of  water.  Now  he 
spreads  a  table  for  them  in  his  own  house.  Here 
was  a  change.  The  change  of  heart  made  the 
change  of  life.  His  conversion  made  him  hospita- 
ble and  liberal.  It  opened  not  only  his  heart  but 
his  home,  his  hand  and  his  store.  A  blessed  fruit 
of  conversion. 

Reader,  are  you  converted?  The  question  is  not 
when,  or  where,  or  how;  but  are  you  now  in  a 
converted  state?  Have  you  now  in  your  heart  the 
elements  of  the  new  life?  Do  you  hate,  flee  from, 
and  mourn  over  sin?  Do  you  constantly  turn  to 
the  Lord  Jesus  Christ  as  your  only  Saviour  and 
Redeemer?  -Do  you  believe?  Do  you  rejoice  believ- 
ing? Does  your  religion  show  itself  in  your  ho?ne 
life?  Are  you  merciful?  Are  you  liberal  and  hos- 
pitable? ''''Examine yourself^  whether y on  be  in  the 
faith  :  prove  your  own  self. ' ' 


SERMON  XVI. 


A  SPURIOUS  CONVERSION. 

Acts.  viii.  9-14,  and  18-25. 


Ads  viii.  p-/4,  afid  i8-2j.  But  there  was  a  certain  man 
called  Simon,  which  beforetime  in  the  same  city  used  sorcery 
and  bewitched  the  people  of  Samaria,  giving  out  that  himself 
was  some  great  one : 

To  whom  they  all  gave  heed,  from  the  least  to  the  greatest, 
saying.  This  man  is  the  great  power  of  God. 

And  to  him  they  had  regard,  because  that  of  long  time  he 
had  bewitched  them  with  sorceries. 

But  when  they  believed  Philip  preaching  the  things  concern- 
ing the  kingdom  of  God,  and  the  name  of  Jesus  Christ,  they 
were  baptized,  both  men  and  women. 

Then  Simon  himself  believed  also  :  and  when  he  was  bap- 
tized, he  continued  with  Philip,  and  wondered  ;  beholding  the 
miracles  and  signs  which  were  done 

And  when  Simon  saw  that  through  laying  on  of  the  apostles' 
hands  the  Holy  Ghost  was  given,  he  offered  them  money,  say- 
ing. Give  me  also  this  power,  that  on  whomsoever  I  lay  hands 
he  may  receive  the  Holy  Ghost. 

But  Peter  said  unto  him,  Thy  money  perish  with  thee,  be- 
cause thou  hast  thought  that  the  gift  of  God  may  be  purchased 
with  money. 

Thou  hast  neither  part  nor  lot  in  this  matter.  For  thy  heart 
is  not  right  in  the  sight  of  God. 

Repent  therefore  of  this  thy  wickedness,  and  pray' God,  if 
perhaps  the  thought  of  thine  heart  may  be  forgiven  thee. 

For  I  perceive  that  thou  art  in  the  gall  of  bitterness,  and  in 
the  bond  of  iniquity. 

Then  answered  Simon,  and  said.  Pray  ye  to  the  Lord  for  me, 
that  none  of  these  things  which  ye  have  spoken  come  upon 
me. 


SERMON    XVI. 

After  the  martyrdom  of  Stephen,  the  persecu- 
tion raged  fiercely  against  the  young  Church. 
That  Church  was  now  receiving  its  first  baptism 
of  blood.  The  blood  of  the  martyr  Stephen  proved 
a  prolific  seed  of  the  Church.  The  disciples,  with 
the  exception  of  the  twelve  Apostles,  one  of  whom 
soon  became  a  martyr  also,  were  scattered  abroad 
throughout  the  regions  of  Jiidea  and  Samaria. 
They  went  everywhere,  preaching  the  Word. 
Philip  went  down  to  the  city  of  Samaria,  and 
preached  Christ  unto  them.  His  success  was 
wonderful.  The  people  with  one  accord  gave  heed 
unto  those  things  which  Philip  spoke.,  hear-ing  and 
seeing  the  miracles  which'he  did.  Philip  gathered  in 
a  great  harvest,  and  there  was  great  joy  in  that  city. 

But  even  there  the  enemy  sowed  tares  among  the 
wheat.,  and  the  Gospel  net  gathered  in  of  fishes  both 
bad  and  good.  Simon  the  sorcerer  had  for  a  long 
time  practiced  the  black  art  of  sorcery  among  those 
rude  and  ignorant  people.  ]\Ian,  even  in  the  dark- 
ness of  heathenism,  feels  that  he  is  related  to  a 
higher  world.     He  must  believe  something.     He 

(253) 


254  NEW  TESTAMENT  CONVERSIONS. 

believes  in  and  fears  the  unseen  powers  of  an  un- 
seen world.  This  intuitive  faith  in  the  unseen,  has 
always  been  utilized  by  imposters.  They  delude 
the  ignorant  and  superstitious  either  by  mere  pre- 
tensions and  juggleries,  or  receive  aid  in  their 
sorceries  from  the  father  of  lies^  who  is  the  prince 
of  the  powers  of  the  air^  and  worketh  hitherto  in  the 
children  of  disobedience, 

Simon  was  one  of  these  practitioners  of  the  black 
art.  He  gave  out  that  himself  was  so^ne  great  one. 
He  taught  or  encouraged  the  people  to  regard  him 
as  a  sort  of  an  incarnation,  as  the  great  power  of 
God. 

But  when  Philip  came,  preaching  Christ  and  the 
things  pertaining  to  the  kingdom  of  God,  Simon's 
former  followers  resorted  to  the  evangelist,  heard 

him  gladly,  and   believed   the   Gospel   which   he 

* 

"preached.  Simon,  forsaken  of  his  admirers,  also 
came  and  heard  the  Word  and  saw  the  miracles 
that  were  wrought  in  the  name  of  Jesus.  He  was 
astonished  and  professed  conversion.  The  sequel 
shows  that  his  was  a  spurious  conversion.  The  ac- 
count of  it  was  no  doubt  written  for  our  warning. 
We  do  well  therefore  to  learn  and  take  to  heart  its 
lessons. 

We  notice  first  his  profession.     He  came  and 


A  SPURIOUS   CONVERSION.  255 

listened  to  the  preaching  of  Philip.  He  heard  the 
plain  and  earnest  Gospel  message  concerning  Christ 
and  His  kingdom.  Wherever  this  pure  old  Gospel 
is  preached  there  is  a  wonderful  charm  and  effect- 
iveness about  it.  Simon  no  doubt  felt  himself 
drawn  by  its  mysterious  influence.  That  influence 
would  make  itself  even  more  felt  by  winning  a 
multitude  of  converts.  So  it  is  still.  That  old 
Gospel  has  not  lost  its  power.  It  still  interests  and 
influences  and  moves  the  children  of  men.  Even 
those  who  come  to  its  preaching  at  first  from 
curiosity  are  soon  made  to  feel  its  mysterious  mov- 
ings.  Philip  accompanied  the  preaching  of  Christ 
with  miracles  wrought  in  His  name.  This  as- 
tonished Simon  still  more.  Who  was  this  Christ, 
in  whose  name  such  mighty  deeds  could  be  done? 
Simon  was  persuaded  that  this  Christ  must  be  some 
great  One.  He  was  ready  to  believe  in  Him  as  a 
being  possessing  miraculous  power.  He  professed 
to  believe  all  that  Philip  said.  He  admitted  that 
it  must  be  historically  true.  He  believed  what  was 
said  about  Christ,  in  the  same  sense  in  which  he 
might  have  believed  some  orator  setting  forth  the 
wonderful  achievements  of  Alexander  the  Great  or 
Julius  Caesar.  It  was  an  intellectual  credence,  a 
historic  assent.     Only  this,  and  nothing  more. 


256  NEW  TESTAMENT  CONVERSIONS. 

So  it  ever  has  been  and  so  it  is  with  multitudes 
of  hearers  still.  They  admit  the  truth  of  the  Bible. 
They  accept  its  facts  and  teachings  just  as  they 
accept  the  contents  of  a  biography  of  George 
Washington  or  Abraham  Lincoln.  They  yield  it 
a  historic  credence,  and  nothing  more. 

Simon  went  a  step  further.  He  not  only  gave 
credence  to  what  he  heard  about  Christ,  but  he 
publicly  confessed  his  belief.  We  know  from  the 
record  of  the  Acts  that  no  adult  was  permitted  to 
be  baptized  without  making  a  profession  of  faith. 
Only  on  making  such  a  profession  were  converts 
baptized  and  received  into  the  communicant  mem- 
bership of  the  Church.  Simon  offered  himself  for 
baptism.  He  was  accepted,  and  became  a  full 
member  of  the  young  Church  at  Samaria. 

Philip  was  not  omniscient.  He  could  not  see 
the  heart.  He  could  only  hear  the  profession.  On 
that  he  baptized  Simon  and  admitted  him  into  the 
congregation. 

The  apostles  had  likewise  admitted  Ananias  and 
Sapphira  into  the  congregation  at  Jerusalem. 
Now  if  inspired  apostles  and  evangelists  were  thus 
imposed  on  by  the  .insincere,  why  should  it  be 
thought  a  strange  thing  that  such  is  still  the  case? 
The   Church  does  not  want  it  so.     She  does  not 


A  SPURIOUS  CONVERSION.  257 

encourage  hypocrisy.  If  she  did,  then  it  would  be 
fair  to  lay  the  blame  on  her.  But  as  long  as  she 
faithfully  protests  against  all  insincerity  and 
hypocrisy,  as  long  as  she  earnestly  warns  against  all 
sin,  and  shows  the  judgment  of  God  against  all 
such  conduct,  her  skirts  are  clear,  and  it  is  the 
grossest  injustice  to  hold  these  things  up  as  a  re- 
proach on  her  fair  name. 

Wherever  there  is  a  pastor  and  congregation 
who  encourage  or  even  connive  at  a  false  profes- 
sion, let  them  be  held  responsible. 

We  notice  secondly  the  serious  defects  in  Simon's 
case. 

From  the  whole  account  it  is  clear  that  his  heart 
remained  in  the  world  and  still  clung  to  the  treas- 
ures of  earth. 

It  is  expected  of  every  one  who  desires  to  become 
a  follower  of  Christ,  that  he  be  willing  to  deny 
himself  and  take  up  his  a^-oss  and  follow  Him.  He 
who  truly  comes  to  Christ,  in  that  very  act  re- 
nounces, gives  up  and  sacrifices  his  former  self- 
pleasing.  His  coming  implies  that  instead  of  say- 
ing as  theretofore,  "What  do  /  feel  like  doing?" 
he  will  henceforth  say,  "Lord,  what  wilt  thou  have 
me  to  do?" 

Simon's   idea   was    the   very   opposite   of    this. 


258  NEW  TESTAMENT  CONVERSIONS. 

When  he  saw  Philip  working  miracles  he  longed 
to  have  this  power  also.  When  Peter  and  John 
came,  and  by  the  laying  on  of  their  hands  imparted 
the  gift  to  work  miracles  to  certain  persons, 
Simon  wanted  this  apostolic  power  also. 

Give  me  also  this  power ^  that  on  whomsoever  I  lay 
hands^  he  may  receive  the  Holy  Ghost.  This  was 
his  request,  and  for  the  granting  of  it  he  was  will- 
ing to  pay. 

Why  did  he  want  this  power?  Evidently  that 
he  might  use  it  as  he  used  his  sorceries  in  former 
times.  The  people  had  paid  him  liberally  for  his 
deeds  of  magic.  Here  was  something  that  trans- 
cended all  his  pretended  powers.  If  he  could  ac- 
quire this  feat,  what  a  name  it  would  give  him! 
How  he  would  then  astound  the  multitudes  far  be- 
yond those  former  days!  And  what  money  it 
would  bring  in!  Everybody  would  be  willing  to 
pay  for  such  an  endowment  from  his  hands!  It 
would  prove  a  bonanza,  and  make  him  a  rich  and 
renowned  man!  Yes,  Simon  had  come  into  the 
Church,  and  now  he  wanted  to  make  his  Church 
membership  pay. 

It  is  a  humilitating  fact  that  Simon  has  had 
multitudes  of  followers.  There  are  many  who  still 
come    into    the    Church    for    worldly   advantage. 


A   SPURIOUS   CONVERSION.  259 

Persons  come  into  a  new  community.  They  visit 
and  investigate  the  diJSerent  churches  in  the  place. 
For  what  purpose?  Is  it  to  find  out  where  the 
Word  of  God  is  preached  in  its  greatest  purity,  and 
where  the  sacraments  are  administered  in  accord- 
ance with  the  Word  ?  This  should  be  the  motive. 
But,  alas!  these  people  are  not  looking  for  a  sjiirit- 
ual  home.  They  are  not  seeking  truth.  They  are 
not  in  search  of  nourishment  for  the  spiritual  man. 
They  are  after  earthly  gain.  They  want  to  find 
out  where  the  best  society  people  go.  They  want 
social  standing  and  advantage  for  themselves  or 
their  families.  Where  they  find  fashion,  and  tone, 
and  popularity,  there  they  will  worship — popular 
favor ! 

Or,  they  are  ambitious.  They  want  to  rise  in 
the  world.  They  desire  a  name  and  a  fame. 
They  would  like  to  have  a  political  office.  Perhaps 
they  can  get  it  through  the  Church!  In  which 
church  can  they  win  the  most  influence,  and  gain 
the  most  votes?  That  shall  be  their  church. 
There  they  will  make  profession — of  a  lie! 

Or,  they  have  an  eye  to  business.  They  want 
customers  for  their  wares.  Which  church  wiU 
furnish  the  most?  The  writer  knows  of  a  com- 
mercial firm  of  four  brothers:  each  one  belongs  to 


26o  NEW  TESTAMENT  CONVERSIONS. 

the  leading  church  of  a  different  denomination. 
Rumor  says  the  object  is  to  draw  trade  from  all  the 
denominations.  Such  persons  are  often  quite 
liberal.  They  ostentatiously  give  large  sums  of 
money,  because  they  believe  it  a  good  investment. 
They  are  the  followers  of  Simon  Magus.  Godliness 
is  gain  with  them.  They  are  in  the  Church  to 
bow  down  to  mammon! 

Now  all  such  persons  have  a  name  to  live^  while 
they  are  dead.  They  have  a  form  of  godliness.,  but 
kfiow  nothing  of  its  power.  They  may  have  wit- 
nessed a  good  confession  before  many  witnesses. 
They  may  have  used  the  sacraments  and  heard  the 
Word.     But  they  are  unconverted  Church  members. 

Such  was  Simon.  Peter  tells  him  that  he  is 
still  in  the  gall  of  bitterness.  His  heart  was  still 
so  full  of  sin,  unrepented  of  and  unforgiven,  that  it 
was  like  the  overflowing  of  bitter  gall. 

He  is  still  in  the  bond  of  iniquity.  Iniquity 
fetters  him  like  a  bond.  His  spirit  is  bound  with 
it  as  with  a  chain.  He  has  the  old  deceitful  and 
stony  heart.  It  has  not  been  softened  by  contri- 
tion. It  has  not  been  purified  through  faith.  Even 
that  semblance  of  repentance  which  he  shows  after 
Peter's  scathing  rebuke  and  denunciation,  bears 
the  mark  of  spuriousness  on  its  face.      He  cries 


A  SPURIOUS  CONVERSION.  26 1 

out  cravenly:  ''''Pray  ye  to  the  Lord  for  me^  that 
none  of  these  things  which  ye  have  spoken  come  upon 
niey  Peter  had  exhorted  him  to  pray.  He  says: 
''''Pray  ye  for  ;;/(?."  Ah  yes,  it  is  easy  to  ask  for 
the  prayers  of  the  Church — any  one  can  do  that. 
It  is  no  sure  evidence  of  the  workings  of  Grace. 
Peter  had  urged  him  to  pray  for  forgivetiess.  He 
begs  them  to  pray  for  removal  of  pimishtnent. 
And  who  does  not  want  punishment  to  be  turned 
aside?  Who  does  not  desire  immunity  from  suf- 
fering? It  requires  no  Grace  in  the  heart  to  want 
to  be  kept  out  of  hell.  Peter  had  assured  him  that 
his  heart  was  not  right  in  the  sight  of  God,  He 
makes  no  mention  of  a  desire  of  a  change  of  heart, 
but  only  that  he  may  be  safe  against  impending 
calamity.  We  can  find  neither  penitence,  nor 
faith,  nor  prayer  in  his  response.  It  is  only  an 
abject  cry  of  fear. 

And  oh,  how  sad  is  the  fate  which  Peter  pro- 
nounces upon  this  spurious  convert!  It  is  the  fate 
of  every  Church  member  who  is  living  in  an  un- 
converted state.  Thou  hast  neither  part  nor  lot  in 
this  matter. 

Thou  didst  desire  the  miraculous  and  extraordi- 
nary gifts  of  the  Spirit.  Thou  lackest  even  His 
ordinary   influences.     Thou    hast    not    even    per- 


262  NEW  TESTAMENT  CONVERSIONS. 

mitted  that  Spirit  to  come  through  Word  or  sacra- 
ment to  regenerate  thy  heart. 

Thou  knowest  not  even  His  renewing  and  sanc- 
tifying operations.  Thou  hast  no  part  or  lot  at  all 
in  the  Holy  Ghost.  Thou  art  an  utter  stranger  to 
His  life-giving  and  saving  efficacy.  Thou  hast 
neither  part  nor  lot  in  the  forgiveness  of  sins, 
neither  part  nor  lot  in  the  kingdom  of  God.  No 
part  in  Christ.  No  part  in  His  purchased  Redemp- 
tion. No  place  in  heaven.  Ah,  Simon,  Simon! 
Thou  mayest  have  many  other  things.  But  what 
shall  it  profit?  Will  thy  other  possessions  help 
thee  in  the  hour  and  article  of  death?  Can  they 
shield  and  save  thee  in  the  day  of  judgment? 

Reader,  have  you  a  part  and  a  lot  in  the  redemp- 
tion that  is  in  Christ  Jesus?  Your  name  may  be 
on  the  Church-roll.  But  is  it  in  the  Book  of  Life? 
You  may  regularly  hear  and  read  the  Word.  But 
is  it  to  you  a  savor  of  life  unto  life?  If  not,  it  is  a 
savor  of  death  unto  death.  You  go  regularly  to  the 
Lord's  table.  But  do  you  find  that  Chrisf  s  flesh 
is  meat  indeed^  and  that  His  blood  is  drink  indeed? 
Or  do  you  come  unprepared,  with  impenitent  and 
unbelieving  heart,  and  thus  eat  and  driiik  judg- 
7ne7it  to  yourself  ?  Have  you  a  real,  conscious,  liv- 
ing and  blessed  part  and  lot  in  Christ? 


p 


SERMON  XVII. 


ALMOST  CONVERTED. 

Acts  xxiv.  24,  25. 


Ads  xxiv.  ^/,  2^.  And  after  certain  days,  when  Felix  came 
with  his  wife  Drusilla,  which  was  a  Jewess,  he  sent  for  Paul, 
and  heard  him  concerning  the  faith  in  Christ. 

And  as  he  reasoned  of  righteousness,  temperance,  and  judg- 
ment to  come,  Felix  trembled  and  answered,  Go  thy  way  for 
this  time  ;  when  I  have  a  convenient  season,  I  will  call  for  thee. 


SERMON  XVII. 

The  Apostle  Paul  had  been  down  to  the  city  of 
Jerusalem.  He  had  carried  down  money  for  the 
poor  saints  in  that  city,  collected  from  the 
churches  in  Macedonia.  It  was  the  time  of  the 
Feast  of  Pentecost.  Paul  always  kept  these  old 
festivals  in  their  new  spirit  and  significance. 
While  worshipping  in  the  temple  he  had  been 
recognized  by  certain  Asiatic  Jews.  These  were 
carnally  minded  fellows,  who  had  heard  Paul 
preach  in  their  own  home,  and  had  taken  umbrage 
at  his  doctrine,  and  at  him  for  preaching  it.  They 
became  deeply  enraged  to  see  one  who  in  their 
eyes  was  such  an  arch-heretic  in  the  temple  during 
the  feast  of  Pentecost.  They,  therefore,  '■'stirred 
tip  all  the  people  and  laid  hands  on  him^  crying  out: 
Men  of  Israel^  help !  This  is  the  man  that  teacheth 
all  men  everyivhere  against  the  people^  and  the  law^ 
and  this  place  :  and  further  brought  Greeks  also  into 
the  temple^  and  hath  polluted  this  holy  place. ' ' 

Paul  was  in  imminent  danger  of  being  torn  in 

pieces  by  the  mob,  and  was  only  rescued  by  the 

quick  and  energetic  interference  of  the  captain  of 

(265) 


266  NEW   TESTAMENT   CONVERSIONS. 

the  gfuard  of  Roman  soldiers  stationed  near  the 
temple.  The  captain  guarded  him  and  permitted 
him  to  speak  for  himself  from  the  steps  of  the 
castle.  Paul  made  a  straightforward  defence  of 
himself  and  his  faith.  The  people  heard  him  until 
he  declared  that  he  was  sent  by  the  Lord  to  preach 
unto  the  Gentiles.  At  this  word  the  violence  of 
the  mob  broke  out  afresh,  and  apparently  to  ap- 
pease them,  the  captain  ordered  Paul  to  be  scourged. 
From  this  indignity  and  torture  Paul  saved  him- 
self by  declaring  himself  a  Roman  citizen.  The 
captain  now  insisted  that  Paul  should  have  a  fair 
trial  before  the  Sanhedrin,  the  highest  court  of  the 
Jews.  Here  again  Paul  pleaded  his  own  cause. 
The  court  broke  up  in  a  tumult,  and  the  captain, 
'■''fearing  lest  Paul  should  have  been  pulled  in  pieces 
of  them^  commanded  the  soldiers  to  go  down  and  to 
take  him  by  force  from  among  them^  and  to  bring 
him,  into  the  castled 

And  so  Paul  again  escaped  the  lawless  violence 
of  his  own  countrymen.  Chagrined  because  he 
had  again  escaped  them,  '•''certain  of  the  Jews 
banded,  themselves  together^  and  bou7td  themselves 
under  a  curse^  sayings  that  they  would  7ieither  eat 
nor  drink  till  they  had  killed  Paul. ' '  But  God  was 
taking  care  of  His  servant.     The  conspiracy  was 


ALMOST  CONVERTED.  267 

reported  to  the  captain.  He  at  once  arranged  to 
transport  Paul  secretly  and  under  a  strong  mili- 
tary escort  to  Cesarea,  that  he  might  have  a  fair 
trial  before  Felix,  the  Governor. 

This  Felix  had  been  procurator  of  Judea  for 
about  six  years.  Historians  inform  us  that  he  had 
been  a  slave,  but  had  obtained  his  freedom,  had 
fought  with  distinction  in  the  Roman  army,  and 
through  the  influence  of  his  brother  Pallas,  who 
was  quite  a  favorite  at  the  court  of  the  Emperor 
Claudius,  had  been  appointed  Governor  of  Judea. 
He  had  ruled  the  province  in  a  mean,  cruel,  and 
profligate  manner.  He  had  crucified  hundreds  of 
turbulent  Jews  and  false  Messiahs.  He  had  bribed 
certain  assassins  to  murder  the  High  Priest  Jona- 
than. Tacitus  tells  us  in  one  sentence,  that  "by 
every  form  of  cruelty  and  lust,  he  wielded  the 
power  of  a  king  in  the  spirit  of  a  slave."  We  are 
further  told  that  he  was  the  husband  of  three  wives. 
Drusilla,  whom  we  meet  as  his  wife  on  this  occa- 
sion, he  had  enticed  away  from  her  lawful  husband, 
Azizus,  king  of  Emesa.  He  was  therefore  living 
in  open  adultery  with  this  Jewish  mistress. 

Before  this  Felix,  Paul  had  had  a  hearing.  It 
seems  that  the  dignified,  manly  and  straightfor- 
ward course  of  Paul,  had,  from  the  very  beginning, 


268  NEW  TESTAMENT  CONVERSIONS. 

made  a  favorable  impression  on  the  Governor. 
But,  to  please  the  Jews,  Paul  was  kept  a  prisoner, 
though  given  as  much  liberty  as  possible  for  one  in 
custody.  He  was  probably  chained  to  a  Roman 
soldier,  and  with  him  was  allowed  to  be  more  or 
less  at  large. 

Felix  had  probably  told  Drusilla  about  tliis  un- 
usual, interesting,  and  eloquent  prisoner.  She, 
being  a  Jewess,  and  knowing  something  of  the 
faith  of  her  fathers,  also  of  that  new  way  which 
they  called  heresy^  desired  to  see  and  hear  this 
prisoner  preacher  of  Christ.  To  gratify  her,  Paul 
was  sent  for  and  given  the  privilege  of  declaring  to 
this  royal  and  profligate  couple  the  faith  ill  Christ. 
Paul,  like  his  Lord,  was  no  respecter  of  persons. 
He  always  preached  the  truth,  and  declared  the 
whole  counsel  of  God,  regardless  of  the  fear  or 
favor  of  man.  What  a  temptation  to  flatter!  Paul 
knew  that  Felix  by  a  nod  of  his  head  could  set  him 
free,  and  by  a  word  could  hand  him  over  to  death. 
But  he  was  not  turned  aside  from  a  straightforward 
course.  His  discourse  is  not  given.  We  are 
simply  told  that  Felix  sent  for  him,  and  heard  him 
concerning  the  faith  in  Christ.  No  doubt  Paul 
told  him  fully  and  plainly  of  W\2X  faith.  And  then, 
as  an  application  of  the  doctrine,  as  an  exhortation, 


ALMOST  CONVERTED.  269 

growing  out  of  and  built  on  the  preceding  instruc- 
tion concerning  the  faith,  Paul  reasoned  of  right- 
eousness^ temperance^  and  judgment  to  come. 

The  result  of  this  sermon  was  that  Felix  was 

ALMOST  CONVERTED. 

And  this  shall  be  the  subject  of  the  present  dis- 
course. To  be  almost  converted  is  certainly  to  be 
in  a  very  serious  and  critical  state.  It  is  to  be  near 
the  kingdom  of  God,  and  yet  not  necessarily  certain 
of  a  place  in  that  kingdom. 

We  inquire  i\\^n^  first  of  all,  what  does  it  mean 
to  be  almost  converted? 

It  means,  in  the  first  place,  that  the  mind  has 
been  enlightened  in  spiritual  things.  So  it  was 
with  Felix.  We  read  that  he  had  a  more  perfect 
knowledge — or  understanding— ^ //z^/  way,  i.  e., 
the  zvay  that  they  called  heresy,  or  the  doctrines 
preached  by  Paul.  During  the  six  years  that  he 
had  ruled  among  the  Jews  he  had  learned  some- 
thing of  their  faith.  He  would  learn  still  more 
from  his  Jewish  wife  Drusilla.  Of  the  new  way  or 
Christianity,  he  must  also  have  known  something. 
It  was  now  nearly  thirty  years  since  the  resurrec- 
tion of  Jesus,  the  coming  of  the  Spirit,  and  the 
first  preaching  of  the  apostles.     The  first  Gentile 


270  NEW  TESTAMENT  CONVERSIONS. 

converts  had  been  made  eighteen  years  ago  among 
the  troops  of  that  very  city  of  Cesarea.  This  neiv 
ztay  was  therefore  well  known.  It  was  every- 
where spoken  against^  and  therefore  everywhere 
spoken  about.  So  Felix  must  have  understood 
something  about  it  even  before  Paul  came.  And 
now  Paul  had  given  that  clear  account  and  made 
that  masterly  defense  in  the  presence  of  his  Jewish 
accusers  and  of  Felix.  A  second  time  Felix  had 
sent  for  Paul  that  he  might  hear  further  for  him- 
self and  Drusilla,  concerning  the  faith  in  Christ. 

His  mind,  therefore,  was  enlightened.  He  knew 
something  about  Christ  and  His  redemption,  and 
himself  as  a  sinner,  needing  that  redemption. 
And  this  is  a  vitally  important  step  towards  con- 
version. When  that  scribe  came  to  Jesus  and 
questioned  Him  about  the  law,  and  when  Jesus  saw 
that  he  answered  discreetly^  He  said  tmto  hiin^ 
Thou  art  not  far  from  the  kingdom  of  God.  His 
mind  was  enlightened,  and  therefore  he  was  near 
the  kingdom,  or  almost  converted. 

When  Paul  was  pleading  before  Agrippa,  he 
appealed  to  Agrippa  as  one  expert  in  all  questions 
a7td  customs  which  are  among  the  Jews.  And  again, 
^'' King  Agrippa^  believest  thoiu  the  prophets?  I  know 
that  thou  believest.''''     The   king's   mind  was  en- 


ALMOST  CONVERTED.  2/1 

lightened,  and  thei^efore  he  was  almost  persuaded 
to  be  a  Christian.  And  so  it  always  is.  When 
the  mind  is  enlightened  by  the  Word  of  God;  when 
the  sinner  is  made  to  nnderstand  what  he  is,  what 
he  needs,  where  and  how  to  get  what  he  needs, 
then  there  is  an  important  step  taken  towards  con- 
version. But  this  divine  illumination  is  not  in. 
itself  conversion. 

A  second  step  is  when  the  conscience  is  aroused. 
In  his  application  of  the  doctrine  of  Christ,  Paul 
reasoned  of  righteousness^  or  uprightness,  te7nper- 
ance^  or  chastity,  2iW^  judgjnent  to  come. 

Before  that  unrighteous  ruler  whose  reign  was 
stained  with  rapine  and  blood,  Paul  reasoned  of 
righteousness.^  right-doing,  uprightness,  moral  char- 
acter. And  so  forcibly  did  he  reason,  so  directlv 
did  he  appeal  to  the  conscience  of  his  hearer,  that 
that  conscience  was  aroused  from  its  torpor.  And 
Felix  felt,  without  Paul  telling  him:  ''''thou  art  the 
ma7t^  thou  art  verily  guilty  of  gross  and  criminal 
unrighteousness."  Unless  thou  seek  to  the  right- 
eousness of  this  Christ  now  set  before  thee,  thou, 
art  justly  condemned. 

Paul  reasoned  of  temperance.  The  word  in  the 
original  means  continence  or  chastity.  Before  this 
libidinous  queen   and  her  lustful  paramour,  Paul 


272  NEW  TESTAMENT  CONVERSIONS. 

reasoned  of  the  duty  and  beauty  of  a  chaste  life. 
Without  Paul's  pointing  out  their  shameful 
breaches  of  morality,  they  quailed  under  his  wQrds, 
and  conscience  held  before  them  their  guilt. 

And  finally  Paul  reasoned  oi  2.  judgment  to  come. 
Awful  time!  When  every  evil  thought,  every  idle 
word,  and  every  sinful  deed,  shall  be  brought  to 
light  and  impartially  judged.  No  wonder  that  the 
:guilty  and  now  fully  awakened  conscience  of  Felix 
:spoke  in  thunder  tones,  and  Felix  trembled.  Self- 
condemned  and  self-convicted,  he  sat  pale  with  ex- 
citement. Surely  the  scales  were  turned.  The 
prisoner  preacher  had  become  the  judge.  The 
Governor  was  the  defendant.  Alarmed  and  strick- 
en, he  acknowledged  to  himself  that  he  was  guilty. 
When  the  conscience  of  the  sinner  is  thus  stirred 
and  alarmed,  then  another  important  step  is  taken 
towards  conversion. 

But  more  than  this.  We  believe  that  the  heart 
of  the  Governor  was  touched  also.  We  believe  that 
as  he  saw  and  felt  his  own  guilt  and  misery,  he 
had  some  longings  after  deliverance  and  a  better 
life.  If  his  heart  had  not  been  touched  and  drawn, 
v/e  believe  he  would  have  dismissed  the  Apostle  in 
anger.  But  he  did  not.  He  simply  intimated 
that  he  could  bear  no  more  now.     But  he  wanted 


ALMOST  CONVERTED.  273 

to  hear  more  at  another  time.  He  was  so  deeply 
impressed  that  he  wanted  to  think  it  all  over.  He 
hoped  at  some  other  time  to  learn  more  and  become 
fully  satisfied. 

Here  was  a  third  important  step.  The  heart  was 
moved  and  drawn.  And  when  the  heart  is  thus 
reached  and  impressed,  when  there  go  up  from  it 
unuttered  yearnings  after  deliverance  and  righteous- 
ness, then  surely  Jesus  of  Nazareth  is  passing  by. 
The  sinner  is  almost  converted.  Surely,  Felix  was 
in  a  hopeful  way.  The  mind  was  enlightened. 
The  conscience  was  aroused.  The  heart  was 
moved.  What  lacked  he  yet?  One  other  faculty 
must  be  reached  and  changed.  The  will  must  give 
its  assent.  If  it  does,  Felix  will  be  entirely  con- 
verted. 

Before  we  look,  however,  at  the  obstacles  that 
often  prevent  an  entire  conversion,  we  inquire 
secondly  into  the  causes  that  bring  the  sinner  thus 
almost  into  the  kingdom. 

The  prime  and  original  cause  of  all  such  experi- 
ences is'always  the  Holy  Spirit.  He  comes  first  to 
the  sinner.  He  operates  through  the  written  and 
sacramental  Word.  As  we  have  elsewhere  shown, 
the  Word  is  His  organ  and  instrument.  Through 
it  He  enlightens,  convicts  and  draws.  Through 
13 


274  NEW  TESTAMENT  CONVERSIONS. 

the  Word  He  operated  on  Felix.  He  convinced 
him  of  his  own  sin,  of  his  need  of  another's  right- 
eousness, and  of  a  fearful  looking  for  of  judgment 
for  all  who  are  not  clothed  in  the  righteousness  of 
the  Substitute.  And  wherever  a  sinner  is  thus  en- 
lightened, convinced,  and  drawn,  it  is  always  a 
work  of  the  Spirit  of  God.  It  is  Divine  Grace 
reaching  down  to  save  him.  And  no  one  was  ever 
thus  reached  and  drawn  towards  the  kingdom  of 
God  except  by  the  Spirit  through  the  Word. 

True,  God  sometimes  uses  other  influences  as 
helps  to  reach  the  sinner.  He  sends  upon  him 
grievous  afiiiction.  He  gives  him  over  to  bitter 
losses  and  disappointments.  He  lays  upon  him 
His  chastening  hand.  Some  people  imagine  that 
such  afiiicting  and  correcting  dispensations  convert 
the  sinner.  But  this  is  a  mistake,  AjBiiction  and 
correction  carry  no  Divine  Grace.  They  have  no 
renewing  or  sanctifying  power.  They  are  only 
intended  to  drive  the  sinner  to  the  Word  and  to 
make  him  attentive  thereto.  They  are  like  the 
shepherd's  crook.  It  cannot  satisfy  the  htmger  or 
thirst  of  the  sheep,  but  he  uses  it  to  drive  them  to 
the  green  pastures  and  beside  the  still  waters.  The 
chastenings  of  the  Lord  are  not  His  vehicles  of 
Grace,  but   they   drive   to  Word   and    Sacrament 


ALMOST  CONVERTED.  275 

which  are.  In  so  far,  and  in  so  far  only,  are  they 
helps  in  drawing  the  sinner  towards  the  kingdom. 

Again,  when  there  is  a  general  interest  in  the 
things  pertaining  to  the  kingdom  of  God.  When 
others  are  coming  to  Christ.  When  friends,  ac- 
quaintances and  neighbors  are  finding  Him,  this 
also  has  a  tendency  to  make  the  sinner  think, 
to  draw  his  attention  to  the  neglected  Word,  to 
take  him  where  that  Word  is  preached.  In  the 
days  of  Felix  there  was  a  deep  interest  in  these 
questions  concerning  the  faith  of  Christ.  Not  only 
in  Jerusalem,  but  in  every  city  where  the  apostles- 
had  preached,*  no  small  stir  was  made  about  this 
new  way.  At  Cesarea,  Cornelius  and  his  house- 
hold had  long  since  embraced  the  new  faith. 
Philip,  the  evangelist,  with  his  four  daughters  who 
had  the  gift  of  prophecy,  lived  there.  Other  disci- 
ples also  were  there.  There  must  have  been  a 
congregation,  and  regular  services.  All  this  may 
also  have  had  an  influence  on  Felix  and  his  Jewish 
wife  Drusilla,  and  induced  them  to  send  for  Paul 
to  hear  more  of  this  faith  in  Christ.  And  thus  did 
Felix  come  to  be  almost  converted.  And  thus  are 
sinners  still  brought  near  to  the  kingdom. 

But  not  all  who  are  almost  converted  become 
entirely  converted.     They  refuse  to  take  the  deci- 


276  NEW  TESTAMENT  CONVERSIONS. 

sive  step.  They  decline  to  make  the  final  sur- 
render. While  the  intellect,  the  conscience  and 
the  heart  have  all  become  interested,  the  will  re- 
fuses, resists  and  rebels.  And  as  long  as  the  will 
does  not  entirely  surrender,  no  matter  what  the 
knowledge,  the  conviction  and  the  feelings  may  be, 
there  is  no  real  conversion.  The  final  decision 
rests  with  the  will.  Its  yielding  is  the  decisive 
step  in  conversion. 

True,  it  is  already  influenced  from  above.  When 
the  Holy  Spirit  has  reached  the  understanding,  the 
conscience  and  the  feelings  of  the  heart,  the  will  is 
more  or  less  influenced.  Divine  Grace  is  at  work 
upon  it.  With  the  help  of  that  Grace,  it  can  sur- 
render, turn  to  Christ  and  accept  the  profiered 
salvation. 

But  while  it  can  do  this  only  in  the  strength 
given  by  the  Holy  Ghost,  for  no  maji  can  say  that 
Jesus  is  the  Christ,  but  by  the  Holy  Ghost^  it  can 
also,  without  any  outside  assistance  whatever,  resist 
and  refuse.  While  God,  therefore,  always  comes 
first  to  man,  and  while  man  can  do  nothing  except 
with  the  help  that  God  gives,  yet  the  final  deter- 
mination rests  with  man,  and  on  himself  alone  is 
the  responsibility  if  he  is  not  saved. 

We  notice,    therefore,    thh-dly,  some  of  the  ob- 


ALMOST  CONVERTED.  277 

stacles  that  keep  men  who  are  almost  converted 
from  being  entirely  converted,  or  some  of  the  in- 
fluences that  determine  the  will  in  deciding  against 
Christ. 

What  are  some  of  the  dreadful  hindrances  that 
hold  back  persons  who  are  not  far  from  the  king- 
dom of  God,  and  finally  shut  them  out  from  that 
kingdom? 

Very  often  people  are  brought  to  the  very  door 
of  the  kingdom,  divine  Grace  has  done  a  saving 
work  in  them,  they  are  almost  and  all  but  converted, 
and  yet  they  are  not  saved.  They  are  kept  out 
by  holding  oji  to  one  sin.  They  have  one  evil 
practice.  They  cherish  it  openly  or  secretly. 
They  are  in  love  with  it.  They  feel, when  reached, 
as  described  above,  that  it  is  dragging  them  down 
to  hell.  They  may  even  cry  out  in  anguish  on 
account  of  the  fearful  hold  it  has  on  them.  It  has 
wound  its  frightful  coils  so  tightly  about  their  life. 
It  seems  burnt  into  the  very  fibre  of  their  being. 
They  are  ready  to  cry  out  in  agony,  "(9-^,  zvretched 
man  that  I  am^  zvho  shall  deliver  me  from  the  body 
of  this  death f^''  They  rattle  the  chains  of  their 
slavery,  and  anon  they  clutch  and  kiss  them  as  if 
they  were  cords  that  were  drawing  them  to  heaven. 
The  question  is  forced  upon  them.    Shall  I  give  up 


278  NEW  TESTAMENT  CONVERSIONS. 

entirely  and  forever  this  sin?  The  answer  is,  I 
cannot,  because  I  ivill  not.  Angels'  hands  are 
reaching  down  to  release  them.  They  ask.  Shall 
I  yield?  Shall  I  give  up  this  sin?  No;  I  will  not. 
And  with  a  determined  effort  they  beat  back  the 
hand  that  is  reaching  down  to  save  them.  They 
were  almost  in  the  kingdom.  They  might  have 
entered  in.  But  that  one  sin,  wilfully  held  on  to, 
stands  like  an  evil  spirit  between  them  and  the 
kingdom,  and  shuts  its  gates  against  them. 

Oh,  the  power  of  one  cherished  and  therefore  un- 
forgiven  sin  !  It  has  kept  thousands  out  of  heaven 
when  they  were  almost  in.  Felix  was  almost  con- 
verted, but  he  would  not  give  up  his  adultery 
with  Drusilla.  Herod  heard  the  Word  of  God 
gladly  from  the  Baptist's  lips,  and  was  drawn 
towards  the  kingdom,  but  he  would  not  restore  his 
brother  Philip's  wife.  Judas,  no  doubt,  had  his 
better  moments  and  his  serious  impressions,  and 
felt  himself  drawn  to  the  blessed  Jesus.  But  he 
loved  money,  and  was  unwilling  to  give  up  that 
love.  Ananias  and  Sapphira  were  drawn  by  the 
apostles'  preaching,  and  wanted  a  place  in  the 
infant  Church.  But  wanted  to  serve  God  and 
mammon,  and  lied  to  the  Holy  Ghost.  That  one 
sin  kept  them  out  of  the  church  invisible. 


ALMOST  CONVERTED.  279 

And  is  it  not  so  still?  .Many  even  in  the  Cliiircli 
are  cherishing  some  pet  sin.  They  know  it  is  stand- 
ing between  them  and  their  God.  They  sometimes ^ 
weep  over  it,  and  tremble  on  account  of  it.  But 
they  will  not  give  it  up.  Often  almost  converted, 
they  die  unconverted  and  are  lost.  Others  are 
kept  out  of  the  Church,  though  often  on  the  point: 
of  going  in  and  giving  themselves  to  Christ,  be- 
cause unwilling  to  give  up  one  particular  sin. 

Again,  it  may  be  bad  company  that  holds  such 
persons  back.  Some  godless  person  has  obtained 
a  fatal  influence  over  them.  It  may  be  more  than 
one  person.  They  are  almost  persuaded  to  be 
Christians.  They  are  on  the  point  of  surrenderingi . 
Suddenly  the  thought  comes,  What  would  that  com- 
panion say?  I  would  have  to  cut  his  acquaintance 
and  give  up  his  friendship,  unless  I  could  get  him 
to  go  with  me.  No,  I  dread  his  displeasure.  I  am 
afraid  of  his  ridicule.  I  could  never  face  him  ao-ain. 
I  ought  to  be  a  Christian.  I  wish  I  were  a  Chris- 
tian. But,  for  the  sake  of  that  person  /'  //  not  yield. 
And  thus  these  persons  are  under  the  fatal  charm 
of  some  evil  companion,  and  rather  than  break 
with  that  companion,  they  deliberately  turn  theijr 
backs  on  their  Redeemer,  and  drive  away  the  good 
Spirit  who  was  striving  to  save  them.     The  thought 


28o  NEW  TESTAMENT  CONVERSIONS. 

of  his  associates  may  have  had  something  to  do 
with  holding  Felix  back.  It  may  also  have  kept 
him  out  of  the  kingdom  of  whom  Jesus  said, 
"Thou  art  not  far  from  the  kingdom."  It  has 
doubtless  kept  out  thousands,  and  is  doing  so  to-day. 
Others  again  are  almost  converted,  but  when  it 
comes  to  the  final  decision  they  dread  the  sacrifices 
they  will  have  to  make.  They  would  like  to  have 
the  crown  of  life,  but  are  unwilling  to  strive  for  it. 
They  love  the  world,  its  pleasures,  its  honors,  or 
its  riches,  so  much  that  they  dread  giving  up 
these  pursuits.  They  shrink  from  the  self-denial 
and  cross-bearing  which  Jesus  imposes.  They 
dread  the  burdens  of  discipleship.  They  forget 
that  the  burdens  which  Jesus  imposes  are  like  the 
weights  of  a  clock,  the  old  man's  staff,  or  the  bur- 
dens of  a  bird's  wing.  Balaam  wanted  to  die  the 
death  of  the  righteous^  but  was  not  willing  to  give 
up  the  wages  of  unrighteousness.  The  rich  youth 
wanted  eternal  life,  but  he  was  unwilling  to  tear  ^ 
his  heart  from  the  love  of  his  possessions.  Demas 
was  a  disciple  and  even  a  fellow-helper  with  the 
apostles,  but  he  forsook  them,  having  loved  this 
present  world.  And  so  thousands  forfeit  eternal 
life  and  the  riches  of  heaven,  because  they  dread 
giving  up  something  that  affords  momentary  grati- 


AI.MOST  CONVERTED.  281 

ficatioii  to  the  flesh.  Almost  converted  sometimes, 
they  are  never  entirely  converted,  because  they  fear 
the  burdens,  which  are  really  no  burdens  to  the 
true  discfiple. 

And  finally,  others  are  kept  out  of  the  kingdom 
because  they  put  off  their  entrance  to  a  more  con- 
venient season.  Oh,  what  uncounted  numbers  are 
to-day  in  hell,  who  were  more  than  once  almost 
converted.  They  were  not  entirely  converted  be- 
cause they  said  to  the  Spirit,  '"''Go  thy  way  for  this 
time ;  when  I  have  a  conve7iient  season  I  will  call 
for  thee. ' '  Thus  did  Felix  grieve  away  the  good 
Spirit.  Many  seasons  came,  for  he  sent  for  Paul 
often  and  communed  or  conversed  with  him. 

But  he  had  deliberately  shaken  off  serious  im- 
pressions, resisted  the  Spirit  who  was  trying  to 
save,  stifled  conviction,  hardened  his  own  heart, 
and  was  now  less  and  less  open  to  good  impres- 
sions. He  became  harder  and  harder.  He  wanted 
an  unlawful  bribe  from  Paul.  He  became  more 
and  more  wicked,  and  came  to  a  miserable  end. 

It  is  indeed  an  awful  thing  to  trifle  with  convic- 
tion. It  is  a  serious  thing  to  be  almost  converted, 
and  then  deliberately  to  turn  back  to  the  world. 
In  .most  cases  it  means  to  deliberately  start  towards 
hell. 


282  NEW  TESTAMENT  CONVERSIONS. 

How  sad  the  results  of  being  almost  converted, 
and  yet  not  entirely!  With  Felix  we  have  seen 
that  the  refusal  was  fatal. 

Every  such  opportunity  unimproved  leaves  the 
sinner  harder  in  heart  and  harder  to  reach.  It 
gives  him  an  impetus  downward. 

And  when  finally  such  an  one  is  lost,  must  it 
not  be  much  harder  to  bear  than  if  he  had  never 
been  touched  by  divine  Grace?  How  hard  for  the 
seafarer,  after  coming  safely  through  the  tempests 
and  dangers  of  a  long  sea  voyage,  to  be  wrecked 
and  drowned  with  the  shore-lights  in  sight.  And 
what  must  it  be  to  have  been  so  near  heaven.  To 
have  almost  looked  inside.  To  have  almost  heard 
the  rustle  of  angel  wings  and  the  music  of  angel 
harps — and  then  to  find  himself  in  hell.  Almost — 
but  lost. 

"Almost  persuaded"  now  to  believe; 
"Almost  persuaded"  Christ  to  receive; 
Seems  now  some  soul  to  say, 
"  Go,  Spirit,  go  Thy  way, 
Some  more  convenient  day 
On  Thee  I'll  call." 

"  Almost  persuaded, "  Come,  come  to-day; 
"Almost  persuaded,"  Turn  not  away  ; 


ALMOST   CONVERTED.  283 

Jesus  iuvites  jou  here, 
Angels  are  lingering  near. 
Prayers  rise  from  hearts  so  dear : 
O  wanderer,  come. 

"Almost  persuaded,"  harvest  is  past ! 
"  Almost  persuaded,"  doom  comes  at  last ! 
"Almost  "  cannot  avail  ; 
"  Almost  "  is  but  to  fail ! 
Sad,  sad,  that  bitter  wail — 
"  Almost — but  lost !  " 


